The Jubilee Magazine

Short Line to the CustomerSuccess Factor Direct Sales

125 Years of VorwerkFrom Carpet Factory to

International Corporate GroupCommitment PaysA Career with Vorwerk

Vorwerk Worldwide125 Years in Touch with People

125 Years of Vorwerk. The Jubilee Magazine

EDITORIAL

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Carl Vorwerk1883

Dr. Jörg Mittelsten Scheid2008

Continuity, Change and the Personal Touch

It is the anniversary of an entrepreneurial idea and its devel -opment. It is the anniversary of a family company that hascontinuously changed and reinvented itself over the 125 yearssince it was established by Carl Vorwerk. And it is an anniver-sary founded on such values as trust, courage, respect andopenness to innovation.

Here at our Vorwerk family enterprise, we have always beengood at combining great continuity with a constant willing-ness to embrace change. The Mittelsten Scheid family, thegroup owners, will continue to safeguard that continuity andat the same time to boldly tread new paths wherever necessitydictates.

Willingness to embrace change is an attribute that runs like aleitmotif through our family history. Our embarking on directsales in 1930 is a fine example of this. Which bank or share-holder, after all, would have financed such a step?

Today Vorwerk generates sales in the region of 700 millioneuros with the Kobold alone. And the direct sales launch ofthe Thermomix, a virtually unknown kitchen innovation inthe 1970s, was also a risky venture – and one that has paid offexceptionally well, when you consider the annual 400,000appliances we sell today. And taking over the U.S. AmericanJAFRA Cosmetics in 2004 (a company providing jobs for500,000 consultants and dealing in what were, at the time,foreign products in a foreign culture for Vorwerk) also seemed a bold step to some – and yet that decision turnedout to be one of the family’s best.

However, 125 years of Vorwerk are also, and primarily, anexcellent reason to say thank you: to our employees in administration, production and the service companies, and toour sales advisers, representatives and consultants all aroundthe world. You are what shape this company and make it successful and to you we owe a special vote of gratitude. This125th Vorwerk anniversary is also and most especially youranniversary!

Yours,

Dr. Jörg Mittelsten ScheidAdvisory Board Chairman, Vorwerk & Co. KG

“125 Years of Vorwerk”

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August-Mittelsten-Scheid-Haus, the Vorwerk group headquarters in Wuppertal:

a photo dating from 1955.

CONTENTS

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4 Editorial:Continuity, Change and the Personal Touch

People

10 The Owner Family Mittelsten Scheid

55 “Vorwerkers” over GenerationsPart of the Family

Worldwide

8 The World of Vorwerk at 10 in the Morning

12 Interview: “125 Years in Touch with People”

16 Success Factor Direct Sales: Short Line to the Customer

20 125 Years of Vorwerk: From Carpet Factory to International Corporate Group

56 A Career with Vorwerk:Commitment Pays

58 Vorwerk Academy: Create (y)our future

60 International Teams: When Different Cultures Work Together ...

Page 20125 years of Vorwerk:

milestones in the company’s history.

Page 8All around the world, people are working hard to make Vorwerk a continuing success story.

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Divisions

26 Kobold: One for All

30 JAFRA Cosmetics: The Power to Transform Lives

34 Thermomix: Perfect Partner for Good Food

40 Lux Asia Pacific: Cleanliness and Freshness

43 Feelina Ironing System: Ironing in Half the Time

44 Engineering:Uncompromising Quality

46 Carpets: “New | Room | Feeling”

48 HECTAS: Spotless Career

50 akf group: Partnering Mid-Scale Businesses

Innovation

62 Product Development: Added Value Through New Ideas

64 Product Design: A Deciding Factor

Social Responsibility

52 Family Manager: The Most Important Job in the World

59 Fundraising Campaign Organized by and for “Vorwerkers”:The Vorwerk Group Sticks Together

66 Vorwerk Family Fund:Committed to Helping Children in Need

68 Joint Foundation anstiftung & ertomis:Ideas for a Humane Future

Page 66Vorwerk supports SOS Children’s Village all over the globe.

Page 46Vorwerk carpets create a “New | Room | Feeling”.

Page 30Quality cosmetics and competent advice from JAFRA.

Page 34Thermomix:

the indispensable kitchen aid.

WORLDWIDE

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The World of Vorwerk... at 10 in the Morning

In the customer’s home, the research laboratory, on the assembly line and in many other workplaces,there are more than 550,000 people contributing their efforts to Vorwerk’s success. We stopped theclock and took a minute to glance over their shoulders.

T hese people make sure thatJAFRA cosmetic products areabsolutely dermatologically

safe, work with top precision to guaran-tee the outstanding quality of Koboldvacuum cleaners, advise customers ontheir ideal skin care, clean buildings,oversee the management of entire ve-hicle fleets, work on the latest carpetcollections or delight customers withtheir demonstrations of the manyadvantages of the Thermomix or the Feelina Ironing System. All over the world, the people who work with Vorwerk play a key role in the globalgrowth and success of Vorwerk withtheir input: their ideas, their dedica-tion and their motivation. The successstory continues – even during this one minute.

U.S.A.Only the best for your skin: Jianchun Zhang tests the quality of cosmetics at the JAFRA research laboratory in Westlake Village, U.S.A.

MexicoPerfect care: The skin gets just the care it needs at a JAFRA class.

SpainQuick and tasty: Representative Ana González soon has her customers convinced of the advantages the Thermomix offers.

ItalyBit by bit: At the Folletto facility in Arcore, BrigattiIvano assembles accessoryparts for the Kobold withgreat precision and concentration.

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ThailandOn the move for clean water: Pin Pakaew with the Lux Asia Pacificwater purifier system, Alva.

ChinaPowerful dust buster. Kobold sales adviser Xiaoli Cheng explainswhat makes the Vorwerk vacuumcleaner such a top performer.

GermanyAndré Breker sets up one of the carpet looms at Vorwerk Carpets.

GermanyPerfect service: akf consultantBarbara Hennecke helps a customer over the phone.

GermanyIroning done in half the time: Monika Stein demonstrates the advantages of the Feelina Ironing System.

TaiwanPerfect rice soup: Team leader She U Lu shows how it goes at a Thermomix demonstration.

PolandAll clear: Teresa Stelmach of Hectasmakes everything gleam.

IndonesiaOn their way to a customer: Mijan and Priyo Cahyono in Jakarta all ready for a demonstration.

ItalyClean and fresh: Sales adviserMirko Pavoni demonstratesthe Kobold’s enormous suctionpower to his customers.

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PEOPLE

W hen company founder Carl Vor-werk was looking for a successor in1904, he decided on his son-in-law,

August Mittelsten Scheid, who came from anold-established Wuppertal textile companyhimself. His family had already been success-fully manufacturing ribbons and borders forsome generations. August Mittelsten Scheidtook up the challenge – and made Vorwerkthe brand name of the Mittelsten Scheidfamily.

In the ensuing period, three differentgenerations would stand at the company’shelm. After August, it was his sons Werner,who brought back the idea of direct sales from the U.S.A. but sadly died as early as 1953, and Erich, whoheaded the company into the late 1960s, introducing broaddiversification and a new structure. Then it was the turn of Jörg, Werner’s son and August’s grandson, to lead the company.

For 40 years he put his personal stamp on anentire Vorwerk era with “motivation, humor,enthusiasm and pleasure in what the company produces.”

At the same time, Dr. Jörg MittelstenScheid embodies like no other the family’sstyle of leadership, which has always ensuredthe company’s great continuity. This is dueto its willingness to embrace change. For Dr. Jörg, as he is known to employees, entre-

preneurial creativity and new ideas are the prerequisites for adynamic operation. “A goal that doesn’t make your heart beatfaster, doesn’t create a light-bulb effect, possibly even triggeramazement or delight, will never spark the energies necessary

The Vorwerk brand is known to millions of people around the globe. Yet only very few are aware that the companyhas remained in the hands of a single family to this day. For over 100 years, the “Vorwerks” have been called Mittelsten Scheid. Like few other families, they embody “their” company. And it is with continuity and fresh ideas that they have transformed it into an international corporate group .

Our Best for Vorwerk

The Owner Family Mittelsten Scheid

Continuity and Willingness toEmbrace Change

We manage a large and successful family enterprise: The Mittelsten Scheid family today numbers 46, 19 of whom are company shareholders.Five of them are members of the Advisory Board.

“The family businessman thinks in a long-term context because he is less concerned with rapidlyincreasing the value of the company than withbeing able to pass it on to the next generation.”

Dr. Jörg Mittelsten ScheidChairman of the Advisory Board

August Mittelsten Scheid receives Germany’s Federal Cross of Merit in 1954 on the occasion of his 50th anniversary with Vorwerk.

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to totally motivate people.” The MittelstenScheids have never been short of suchideas. From the creation of the first Koboldto the introduction of direct sales, entryinto new markets by opening up and reor-ganizing the company through to theinternationalization and transformation ofthe medium-sized company into a globalcorporate group – in every generation,their innovative strength and entrepre-neurial pluck have set developments inmotion that opened up new perspectivesfor the company.

The ability to combine such innovativespirit with a long-term corporate policy isthe true secret of the Mittelsten Scheids’success. That’s because sustainable corpo-rate management has always been and stillis the principle objective, and an objectivebacked by every member of the family –even those not involved in the active management of the com-pany. “What unites us is the feeling that in case of doubt wewould place the needs and necessities of the company beforeour own,” says Jens Mittelsten Scheid, Erich’s son and Jörg’s cousin, describing the family’s sense of collective responsibility.

Exactly how that works is very well illustrated by Jens Mittelsten Scheid’s personal history. He himself has never saton the Executive Board. After a one-year internship at Vorwerk,he decided against following in his father’s footsteps and infavor of studying philosophy. Today he does his bit by contri-buting his talents to the anstiftung & ertomis foundation andalso by serving on the Advisory Board of the Vorwerk group.So there is no pressure on a particular family line to continue

at the top – capabilities and inner convic-tion are the deciding factors. In the sameway, unconventional thinking and socialresponsibility have always had their placewith the Mittelsten Scheids. Each contri-butes whatever he or she can give to thecompany. That’s how, over the years, a corporate culture has evolved with whichnot only the family, but also the peoplewho work with Vorwerk can identify.

But maybe their name also has some-thing to do with the Mittelsten Scheids’becoming the pillar of calm stabilitythroughout the company’s eventfulhistory. In the 16th century, namely, the“Mittelste Scheid” was the middle part of

a family estate that was divided three ways and the one inheri-ted by the family’s present line from their ancestor Hans optem Scheide. The family’s cohesion and faith in the companyform the basis of a development that has been in progress for125 years.

The family has given the Vorwerk brand a great deal: a new face, a portfolio of top-quality products, an internationaldirection and a living tradition – in fact, the only thing the Mittelsten Scheids have preferred to keep to themselves is their name.

Room for unconventional thinking, too

Decisions “from the middle”

Dr. Erich Mittelsten Scheid was managing partner from 1943 until 1969.

Dr. Dr. h.c. Jörg Mittelsten Scheid, who guided the company’s fortunes from 1969 until the end of 2005, today chairs the Advisory Board.

Werner Mittelsten Scheid managed the company alongside his brother Erich from1943 until 1953.

WORLDWIDE

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In the 125 years since 1883, Vorwerk has come a long way: from a carpet factory to a highly diversified, international corporate group with 2.3 billion euros in business volume and 566,000 employees and sales advisers worldwide. Jürgen Hardt, Senior Vice President, Vorwerk Public Relations, talked with the Chairman of the Advisory Board, Dr. Jörg Mittelsten Scheid, and the Managing Partners, Achim Schwanitz and Peter Oberegger, about the reasons for Vorwerk’s success and asked them to share their vision of the group’s future.

Interview

“125 Years in Touch with People”

Jürgen Hardt: Gentlemen, you represent three generationsof executive management at Vorwerk. What do you see asbeing this anniversary’s central focus?

Achim Schwanitz: 125 years, that’s a very long time and it has made its mark on our company. In these 125 years, thefoundations were laid on which we build today: the differentdivisions centered on our direct dealings with the customer,Vorwerk’s diverse international activities and, last but notleast, our loyal and qualified employees and sales teams.

Peter Oberegger: What we can learn from our history is thatover the decades, Vorwerk’s distinguishing features havebeen the group’s great adaptability and growth orientation.By constantly changing and going new ways, we progress and develop – and that is ultimately the key to our success.

Dr. Jörg Mittelsten Scheid: At the same time, Vorwerk haspreserved its family character. The Mittelsten Scheid family is always right there behind the company, assuring its independence and backing its forward-looking strategy.

Are there differences between family enterprises and publicly traded companies?

Dr. Jörg Mittelsten Scheid: Family enterprises think about the next generation, too, and so take a long-term view. That has always been good for Vorwerk. Without the family’sfarsighted approach and its support, many of the decisionsthat made Vorwerk great would not have been possible. Oneinstance of this is when we took the plunge into direct salesin 1930, an entirely new concept for us back then. It was amove that revolutionized the company, but at the time it wasregarded with great skepticism. Another example is our entryinto the direct sales market for cosmetics in 2004 throughJAFRA. Many people said, “We know nothing about it …” My reply was that we do know something about people andabout taking a direct, personal approach with them. That’swhat counts.

And you have been proved right. JAFRA is highly successful and has made excellent progress under Vorwerk ownership …

Peter Oberegger: This is the message the anniversary holdsfor the future: We are successful when we are bold and adap-table and respond appropriately to changes in the world and

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“That is precisely why we are gro-wing: Because we are committed topreserving our personal touch andgiving people what they want.“

Dr. Jörg Mittelsten ScheidChairman of the Advisory Board

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WORLDWIDE

in our consumers. Had we stuck to making carpet, Vorwerkwould have long ceased to exist. Carpets is as much a part of the company today as are our direct sales companies forhousehold appliances – Kobold, Thermomix, Feelina, thewater purifier Alva – and for JAFRA cosmetics. HECTAS Facility Management and akf Financial Services make theideal complements to our portfolio because they, too, placean emphasis on people. Vorwerk has a number of divisions,each of them successful in its own field. At the same time, all of our divisions operate internationally – from Japan toMexico. This structure offers great growth potential becauseit enables us to profit from the positive development of dynamic markets worldwide.

How does Vorwerk keep its bearings in times of change?

Achim Schwanitz: Whatever changes have taken place, Vorwerk has always preserved its identity and its values. Weorient our corporate policy according to the five Vorwerkprinciples. Our success depends on people, and that means it depends on our customers, our sales teams and ouremployees. Then there’s our high standard of quality – qua-lity and performance matter. The customer rewards us withloyalty to the brand and to the products. What’s more, we areprepared to make changes and to accept progress and con-stantly strive to make our vision of dynamic and profitablegrowth for our company a reality. We think and act in a long-term context – that’s part of our tradition as a family com-pany. Vorwerk is committed to a sustainable corporate policy.

Peter Oberegger: Over the coming years, we will be doingeven more on this front. The Vorwerk principles my partnerjust mentioned really do guide our daily activities. But measuring our day-to-day dealings against these benchmarksand finding answers to new developments that are in linewith our corporate principles is an ongoing task.

For example?

Achim Schwanitz: For example, when it’s a question of winning 21st century customers over to the Vorwerk productsand services. Many companies claim to make “the customertheir focus” but here at Vorwerk, that really is what we doeach and every day. Direct contact to the customer, that’s ourbusiness model. Through direct contact, we help to satisfy animportant human need that exists worldwide. Many peoplewant personal contact, detailed information and service.That’s why, in the future too, the world will hold tremendouspotential for our form of distribution, direct sales.

“Growth through change – that is the key to our success.”

Peter ObereggerManaging partner

“Whatever changes have takenplace, Vorwerk has always preser-ved its identity and its values.”

Achim SchwanitzManaging partner

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Peter Oberegger: In order to do even better in existing andnew markets, we should systematically implement the success-ful concepts of our strong sales companies when we expandinto new areas. Applying best practices is a golden rule thathelps us to penetrate new markets faster and more efficiently.This calls for an intensive discussion of experiences acrossnational and divisional borders. Our international confe-rences and management programs serve this end.

How will Vorwerk look ten years from now?

Achim Schwanitz: Growth is the goal – step-by-step, profitablegrowth. We have already defined the strategic areas of growththat should help us to double our sales in ten years. Eachdivision must develop its own targets and define its own prio-rities. We want to have far more sales advisers and employeesaround the world and to be able to offer them new opportu-nities for career development. Aside from Europe, we seeAsia and the Americas as becoming our future market base.

Peter Oberegger: I am working to achieve within ten yearsthe goal outlined by Achim Schwanitz and backed by thefamily and the Executive Board. My vision: In China we willhave a very large operation in 2018. There, as in the rest ofAsia, we will have become a well-known brand.

We will also be able to report thriving business activities inIndia, Brazil and Russia in 2018. In Europe, we will then – I hope – be the market leader in home care not only in Italy, as we are today, but also in many other countries. The Thermomix will continue to conquer markets outsideEurope. Feelina will have, possibly with a modified salesmodel, lots of satisfied customers. JAFRA Cosmetics will befirmly established in many countries around the world andLux will be well represented with its water purifiers andhome care systems in large parts of Asia. HECTAS and theakf bank will have a thriving European business in 10 years’time. The number of people working with Vorwerk will havecrossed the one million threshold. And most importantly ofall: Everywhere in the world, there will be happy customersand sales advisers who believe in Vorwerk and its products.

Dr. Jörg Mittelsten Scheid: That is precisely why we are growing: Because we are deeply committed – sometimes even counter to current trends – to preserving our personaltouch and giving people what they want.

The Executive Board of the Vorwerk group (l. to r.):Eberhard Pothmann (Finance), Jochen Sarrazin (Controlling),

Peter Oberegger (Managing Partner), Achim Schwanitz (Managing Partner) and Wolfgang Bahlmann

(Human Resources and IT).

Better to shop conven-iently at home thanspend ages searching for the right product incrowded stores.

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WORLDWIDE

Some revolutions start off secretly and silently and sometimes they carry on the same way – but they’re still revolutions. Vorwerk counts as a trailblazer in one such revolution, a form of selling that is a million-dollar business today: direct selling. In just 80 years, Vorwerk has become the worldwide Number One in the direct sale of quality products. But what’s behind the great success of this form of selling?

Success Factor Direct Sales

Short Lineto the Customer

The Direct Sales success story: Kobold salesadvisers in the 1960s (left) and a demonstra-tion of the Bimby in Portugal (center). Right:A Feelina adviser demonstrates the pleasantjob of ironing with the Feelina system.

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I t all began with a shelf warmer. Backin 1929, when Vorwerk invented theKobold, it was a technical sensation

because it was the very first example ofmodern vacuum cleaning technologythat was light and handy, unlike it’s cum-bersome predecessors. But that was alsoits disadvantage because no one couldbelieve that such a small appliance couldbe so efficient. Despite its attractive price,the Kobold remained on the shelves likea dead weight. Fortunately for Vorwerk,Werner Mittelsten Scheid, the Vorwerkfounder’s grandson, brought the cleverbusiness idea of direct selling back withhim from a trip to the United States.

The basic idea was that talking perso-nally with customers and demonstratinga product on the spot was the best way toconvince them of its advantages. Whatstarted out as an emergency solutionwould pave the way for a new industry.Many products are sold direct today andthe industry is booming. With theKobold, the Thermomix and the FeelinaIroning System, the water purifiers andvacuum cleaners produced by Lux AsiaPacific and the JAFRA cosmetics pro-gram, Vorwerk is prominently represen-

ted in direct sales. Some 530,000 consul-tants and representatives make Vorwerkthe world’s foremost direct seller of high-quality household appliances and con-sumables today. The company generatesan annual business volume of over 2.3 bil-lion euros. Thanks to its dynamic growth,Vorwerk Direct Sales offers attractive jobopportunities and career openings forsales advisers and representatives.

Intensive consultation: That’s one wayto sum up the direct sales system becauseit offers customers the chance to try outproducts for themselves. And that’s notall, direct sales cashes in on the advan-tages of other forms of selling without cus-tomers having to put up with the disad-vantages involved. Instead of walkingaround crowded stores, they can staycomfortably at home and still discover forthemselves the quality and efficiency of aproduct.

Generations of housewives have beenastonished to see how much dirt theKobold can extract from their carpet.Even the best sales assistant at a storewould hardly be able to demonstrate suchoutstanding performance. Retail storesare often not in a position to provide qua-lified advice, particularly when it comesto products that require explanation.While the retail trade is increasingly cut-ting staff numbers and with them the levelof assistance customers receive, directsales companies constantly promote theiradvisers’ competence by giving them trai-ning and further training specificallydeveloped to turn them into genuine pro-duct specialists.

A JAFRA consultation in the United States, water analysis in Thailand or a Thermomix party in Taiwan – it’s the personal touch that leads to success.

Opportunities for sales advisers, advantages for customers

Intensive consultation– that’s the greatadvantage of directsales.

Vorwerk, with its divisions, moves in agrowing global market and is one ofaround 700 direct sales companies inmore than 50 countries around the world.Together, they have a market volume totaling 110 billion euros and providejobs for some 60 million sales advisers.

Facts & Figures

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“Good recommenda-tions are our greatestasset.”

Pepi MartinKobold sales adviser, Spain

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Close contact with the customer in turnleads to sales advisers and consultants –and therefore the company – receivingdirect feedback about products, whichthen flows straight into development.

Naturally, the products ordered aredelivered straight to the customer’s homeso there is no risk of the customer recei-ving the wrong or unsuitable articles.What’s more, the quality of many of theproducts which are sold direct is superiorto that of comparable retail products –after all, customers are the toughesttesters. All in all, direct selling is on theadvance, worldwide, because it has manyadvantages not only for the customer, butalso for the company.

And that’s not all. Vorwerk Direct Salesoffers some genuine career opportunitiesfor sales advisers. Self-discipline, a soci-able disposition, flexibility, specialistknowledge and enthusiasm for the pro-duct are the requisite qualities for suc-cess. But then there are literally no limitsto what sales advisers can achieve – irre-spective of whether they prefer to workfull-time or opt for a part-time model thatgives them an attractive extra income.

Vorwerk uses different forms of directselling around the world. There’s the clas-sic door-to-door system, where a salesadviser visits the households in a previo-usly defined sales territory; the referralsystem, which relies on personal recom-mendations for new contacts, and the so-called “party plan,” where a hostess invi-tes a group of potential customers to herhome for a product demonstration.Which form is used when and wherevaries according to product and region.

In Spain and France, for instance, goodrecommendations are the greatest assetboth for the Thermomix and the Kobold.In other countries, on the other hand,the classic door-to-door method isfavored, while demonstrations of pro-ducts such as the Feelina Ironing System,cosmetics from JAFRA and also the Thermomix rely on the party plan.

Typical countries for door-to-doorbusiness, where the sales adviser knocksat the customer’s door, are Germany,Austria and Italy as well as Asian coun-tries, such as Indonesia, Thailand andChina. Cultural norms in Asia differ fromthose in Europe, which means that diffe-rent rules apply to the different salesteams. The Vorwerk divisions naturallyeach adjust their direct selling system tofit cultural differences.

Direct selling is booming – worldwide.There are more than 700 direct sellingcompanies operating in over 50 countries

Direct selling is firmly in female hands:Around 84 percent of the sales advisersin all European companies are women.Many of them work part-time so thatthey can strike the ideal balance betweentheir job and caring for their family and atthe same time earn some attractive extraincome.

Facts & Figures

People are happy to recommend goodproducts to others, and that’s whatthe direct sales business thrives on:with water purifiers in Vietnam (left)and with the Kobold cleaning systemin Spain (center).

It’s all about trust and theright timing

Different forms of direct selling

A sociable disposition andinfectious enthusiasm –these are the distinguishingfeatures of a good salesadviser.

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Being a “people person” is part of the job. Good sales advisersand representatives have so much faith in their products, it rubs off on their customers – the best prerequisite for successful sales.

W e back young start-ups withinnovative ideas in the busi-ness of direct selling – and we

are the only company to make this kindof investment,” Dirk Meurer explains. He is one of the two managing directorsof Vorwerk Direct Selling Ventures.

Formed in 2007, the company investschiefly in young, fast-growing businesses.“The individual investments we make arein the region of half a million to five million euros.

The main focus of our activities is presently still in Europe; in the comingyears, Vorwerk Direct Selling Venturesalso plans to increase its internationalinvestments,” says Eberhard Pothmann,a member of the Vorwerk ExecutiveBoard and CFO of the Vorwerk group.

Both partners benefit from VorwerkDirect Selling Ventures’ interest: Youngcompanies gain a sound capital basis andcan draw on Vorwerk’s broad internatio-nal experience and market know-how –

and thrive on that basis. Vorwerk, on theother hand, profits via its investments inthose start-ups from the dynamic growthof the global direct selling market. “Vorwerk Direct Selling Ventures is theideal partner for entrepreneurs wishingto achieve their growth targets with along-term investor without relinquishingcontrol of their business,” says NorbertMuschong, Managing Director of Vorwerk Direct Selling Ventures, sum-ming up.

Vorwerk Direct Selling Ventures

Growth Capital for Innovative Direct Sales Operations

around the globe. The market volume in2006 totaled some 110 billion euros andwas generated by around 60 million salesadvisors. There are great expectationsthat Latin America, the Asia-Pacificregion and eastern Europe in particularwill see strong growth in the coming yearsthanks to the tremendous market poten-

tial of the rising middle class there. Goodprospects are also seen in westernEurope, even though the markets will notdevelop as strongly as before. Companieswishing to assert their position in a com-petitive market will have to adopt newsales strategies. For many companieshere, direct selling is an alternative with

a future and as such will generally gainsignificance as a sales form.

Good news for all our customers: Many consumers see direct selling as theideal way to shop – convenient, easy, withqualified assistance and a personal touch.

From Carpet Factory to International Corporate Group

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1883The brothers Carl and Adolf Vorwerkfound the Barmer Teppichfabrik Vorwerk & Co. in Wuppertal on April 21.

1897Carl Vorwerk further develops the Englishlooms and applies for his own patent. Soon after, production commences in the company’s own machine shop. 1907

August Mittelsten Scheid, Carl Vorwerk’sson-in-law, joins the company and becomes sole managing partner.

1909“Vorwerk” becomes a registered carpettrademark, creating serious competitionfor oriental carpets.

1901Vorwerk patents a new, closely woven carpet that Carl Vorwerk “invented” on the chance discovery of a production error.

1903Besides carpets, Vorwerk now also sells its own looms.

1908The company celebrates its 25th anniversary – by this time, Vorwerkprovides jobs for some 500 people.

The Vorwerk Group

18901880 1900 1910

1886Karl Benz builds the

first automobile.

1887The Statue of Liberty goes up in New York.

The Vorwerk Products

1895Carl Gustav Röntgen

discovers X-rays.

1900The first 100,000 HP steam engine is built.

1903The Wuppertal suspension

railway opens.

1883Production of high-qualitycarpets commences.

Contemporary History

1930Werner Mittelsten Scheid introduces direct sales – marking a new chapter in the history of the company.

1920The 1920s is a period of extremeeconomic fluctuation – between record profits and difficult phases.

1938Vorwerk Folletto, the first international Kobold company, is founded in Italy.

1943The war puts a stop to direct sales. The plant is almost completely destroyed in an air raid. Dr. Erich and Werner Mittelsten Scheid take over management of the company.

1929Vorwerk chief engineer Engelbert Gorissen develops a small, hand-held vacuum cleaner.

1930A patent is taken out on the Kobold vacuum cleaner and salesbegin. Diverse accessories follow, including a hair dryer and a grooming attachment for horses.

1920 1930 1940

1920The radio takes the world by storm.

1927Lindbergh makes the first non-stop

flight from New York to Paris.

1939-45Second World War.

1930First Football World CupChampionship is held in

Uruguay.

1914-18First World War.

1949The one millionth Kobold is sold.

1953Following the death of his brother, Dr. Erich Mittelsten Scheid heads the company alone.

1968Vorwerk founds the Wuppertal-based akf bank.

1969Dr. Jörg Mittelsten Scheid joins the Executive Board.

1974Vorwerk founds the facility management company HygienicService Gebäudereinigung undUmweltpflege GmbH (today’sHECTAS Gebäudedienste).

Starting 1955Systematic expansion of the product lines floor care and kitchen appliances, refrigerators and washing machines.

1971The “original Thermomix” goes on the market.

1981Market launch of the Tiger cylinder vacuum cleaner.

1950 1960 1970

1953Mount Everest is conquered

for the first time.

1969Neil Armstrong becomes the first human being to

land on the moon.

1975The Peace Movement is formed

in Europe and the USA.

1961The Berlin Wall goes up.

1945The United Nations (UNO)

is founded.

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1990Vorwerk opens a branch in China; otherinternational branches follow in easternEurope – internationalization of DirectSales continues apace.

2001Lux Asia Pacific, headquartered in Singapore, becomes part of the Vorwerk group.

2004Since 2004, the U.S.-based JAFRACosmetics has been a member ofthe Vorwerk group. The companyproduces and sells skin care products, cosmetics and perfumes.

2008125 years of Vorwerk – with

some 560,000 sales advisers, representatives, consultants andemployees all around the world. 2007

Vorwerk Direct Selling Ventures starts up.

2001Vorwerk begins selling not only vacuum cleaners, but also water purifiers, washing machines and air purifiers in the Asia-Pacific region.

1991The hard floor polishing appliance, Pulilux, comes out.

2002Sales of the Feelina Ironing System commence.

2007JAFRA Cosmetics launches the Dynamics product line.

1980 1990 2000 2008

1996Birth of Dolly the sheep, thefirst mammal to be cloned.

1989Fall of the Berlin Wall.

2004Inauguration of the world’s highest

skyscraper in Taipeh (508m).

1981IBM presents the first

PC to the world.

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DIVISIONS

T he Kobold is everybody’s darlingtoday, but the history of the high-quality iconic vacuum cleaner

started with a crisis – and with an inge-nious idea. When the market for gramo-phone drives went into decline with theadvent of the radio in the 1920s, Vorwerkcould no longer find buyers for its smallmotors. But the company rose to the chal-lenge with an innovative idea and a wil-lingness to take a new direction. In 1929,chief engineer Engelbert Gorissen de -signed a simple vacuum cleaner consistingmerely of a motor, a dust bag and a

handle. A revolutionary invention be -cause at that time, vacuum cleaners weremonstrous machines that had to be trans-ported on horse-drawn carts and operat -ed by two men! The hand-held vacuumcleaner was patented in 1930, but “Modell30” didn’t sell. Customers simply didn’ttrust the little vacuum cleaner to be a topperformer. In fact, it only became aroaring success in the wake of a revolu-tionary import from America.

Werner Mittelsten Scheid, son of thethen company owner, came back fromthe United States with the idea of sellingthe product not through stores, butwhere it would be used, in the customer’shome. Direct sales – Vorwerk’s successfulsales concept – soon caught on and thesuccess story of the Kobold took itscourse.

Very soon, the handy little helper hadconquered the hearts of women – andmany men, too. And no wonder, becausethe “motorized broom” could be trans-formed in a jiffy into a hair or clothesdryer, a perfume atomizer, insect killer ora device for cleaning and grooming ani-mals. Over time, Vorwerk adapted thevacuum cleaner to the needs of modernhouseholds by increasing its suctionpower and producing new accessories.Today, with the Kobold, Tiger, Puliluxand co., Vorwerk produces a completehousehold cleaning system that cleansand cares for carpets, hard floors andupholstery all the way into to the tiniest

nook or cranny. And the innovativestrength of Vorwerk’s engineers remainsunbroken, as the latest generation ofvacuum cleaners demonstrates: They areextremely energy-saving and equippedwith a highly effective filter system thatswallows up even the finest dust particles,letting allergy sufferers breathe freely.

The Kobold has enjoyed cult status inGermany for decades and it has alreadybeen a long time since the Kobold familybegan to take the international marketby storm, too. Today the green and whiteappliances help family managers in manyEuropean and Asian countries performtheir daily chores.

Top quality, durability, a unique deep-cleaning system and high performance coupled with low wattage – these are the qualitiesthat make the Kobold the best in its class. Yet this iconic vacuum cleaner was originally born of necessity.

A success story takes its course

Kobold Vacuum Cleaner

One for All

Federico MaterazziCEO Kobold

Gleaming hard floors – brilliantly simple with the Pulilux.

27Innovative floor care: the Kobold 53 dating from1953 and the new Kobold 136 with the electric brush EB 360.

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Sold since: 1930Division headquarters: SwitzerlandCountries: The division has its own direct salescompanies in Italy, Germany, China, Austria, Spain, the Czech Republic, France, Russia and Switzerland and sells via distributors in 14 other countriesCEO: Federico Materazzi People working with Division Kobold: around14,300, of whom some 9,700 are sales advisersWebsite: www.vorwerk-kobold.com

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DIVISIONS

1929Modell 30: It all started

with the original Kobold.

1950Now, if that isn’t a good reason to buy!Starting in late 1950, Vorwerk produceda new Kobold accessory, the legendaryhair-dryer hood.

1953The Kobold 53 appears for the first time in green and beige design and is die-cast in unbreakable thermoplastic.

1932Advertising pamphlet for the Modell 33, which was produced between 1932 and 1934.

1955Used on animals, the Kobold groomsand cleans in one go – and stops thestable smell from clinging to the groom.

The rotor, or fan wheel, of the Kobold vacuum cleaner motor covers an average 750,000 kilometers during the course of its life. That’s like traveling to the moon and back.

Smooth out the surface of the vacuum cleaner’s FL-A13 active carbon filter and it measures 6,000 square meters – that’s thesize of 10 soccer fields put together.

Facts & Figures

29

1967Vorwerk demonstrated the

advantages of the Kobold to an international public at

trade fairs all over the world.

2008Customers are still buying the Kobold where they need it: in their own home.

1989The 50 millionth electrical appliance comes off the production line at Vorwerk – and it’s a Kobold. Johannes Rau, prime minister of North Rhine-Westphalia, and later Germany’spresident, is on hand to witness the event.

2

3

1Clean-cut solution: The new Kobold 136, a particularlyenergy-saving hand-held vacuum cleaner, is equippedwith a multi-step filter system that lets allergy sufferersbreathe freely.

Wild for dust: The new, large-capacity cylinder vacuumcleaner Tiger 260 (1) is ideal for big households.

Multi-talent for carpets and hard floors: the electric brush EB 360 sweeps away every speck of dirt.

Smart carpet cleaning: The Frischer-Kit carpet freshenerand the electric brush really get to the bottom of carpets.

Dust just doesn’t have a chance: The Polsterboy PB 420(2) has vibrating suction brushes that make sofas and armchairs look as fresh as new.

A gleam that can’t be bettered: The Pulilux PL 515 (3)vacuums and cleans hard floors all the way into the veryfarthest corner.

Neat little nozzles: Hard floors or tiny nooks and crannies – Vorwerk has the nozzle attachment to fit the bill.

Cleaning agents for deep-down cleanliness: Kobosanactive for daily care; Kobotex to fight stubborn stains; Kobolin, the special treatment for hard floors; Laveniafor freshening up mattresses.

Floor care made by VorwerkTremendous suction power and durability, low energy consumption and a host of applications are what make the floorcare products from Vorwerk so universally popular. The high-quality products continually score top marks in independenttests. Here are the most important members of the “Kobold family” that ensure cleanliness and freshness.

DIVISIONS

JAFRA Cosmetics has the right care products for every type of skin.

“In addition to my importantresponsibilities as housewife andmother, I was looking for an activity that gave me the chance to get to know people.”

Karla Plaza ArriolaJAFRA consultant, Mexico

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31

K arla Plaza from Morelia, the capital of the federal state ofMichoacán in Central Mexico, is

one of the more than 435,000 JAFRA con-sultants in the country. For 18 years, shehas promoted the culture of skin careamong women interested in improvingtheir personal image through scheduledhome get-togethers known as “classes.”She also uses the classes to encourageothers to join JAFRA as a consultant.

JAFRA Cosmetics, with all the experi-ence of 52 years in direct sales, giveswomen the opportunity to earn anincome and build a home-based businessselling top-quality beauty and skin careproducts, while taking full advantage oftheir personal time. At the classes, whichare held at the customers’ home, con-sultants sell skin and body care products,perfume, decorative cosmetics, SPA andanti-aging products. And now is a parti-cularly good time to become a JAFRA

consultant as Frank Mineo, President andCEO of JAFRA, agrees: “There has neverbeen a better time for women to go intobusiness for themselves. Women-ownedbusinesses are the driving force of theU.S., European and Mexican economies."

Karla is a living example of this – “inaddition to my important responsibilitiesas housewife and mother, I was lookingfor an activity that gave me the chance toget to know people. Importantly, I waslooking for a well-paid activity that wouldprovide me with total economic inde-pendence.” The JAFRA slogan “ThePower to Transform Lives” also plays onthe unparalleled opportunity the com-pany offers women to achieve impressivelevels of personal and professionalgrowth and so to improve their own livesand those of their families

The idea of offering women an attrac-tive job prospect with quality products wasa key consideration for company foun-ders Jan and Frank Day from the UnitedStates, who gave the brand its name,JAFRA. In the diary Jan Day kept from1956 to 1973, in which she kept a recordof the early JAFRA years, she writes:

As in any large metropolis, Mexico City is a place where the extremely busy lifestyle, pollution and the diversity of weatherconditions have negative effects on people’s skin. Unfortunately, these elements contribute to premature aging, accentuatingexpression lines and diminishing skin’s luminosity. For JAFRA skin care consultants, however, this reality is not an obstaclebut a great opportunity to demonstrate the top-quality JAFRA Cosmetics products to other women and at the same time builda secure, financially independent business for themselves.

JAFRA Cosmetics – Career Opportunities for Women

The Power to Transform Lives

JAFRA consultant Karla Plaza Arriola knows her customers’ skin care needs.

Now is the right time to join JAFRA

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DIVISIONS

“Frank and I wanted to sell only the finest,the most elegant cosmetics it was possi-ble to produce. We dreamed of a com-pany with a heart – a company sensitiveto the wishes and hopes of everyone connected with it. A company with a conscience.”

Karla begins every class with an individualskin test, which allows her to learn aboutthe skin type of her guests and, in thatway, recommend the right products fortheir specific needs. Sitting around thetable, each with a small mirror, the poten-tial customers pay careful attention to theexperienced consultant’s demonstration.

Applying eye cream to one guest andmassaging it gently into the area aroundher eyes, Karla explains the many bene-fits that this product brings to the skin.The other women spontaneously talkabout the natural appearance of smallwrinkles, impurities, dry patches, redness– unwanted blemishes and frequent prob -lems that can be prevented or even eli-minated with special skin care products.At the end of the class, everyone is happy:Karla is pleased about all the orders shehas booked and her lucrative income,while her guests feel they have been givenexcellent advice and are delighted withthe products and career opportunitiesJAFRA offers.

“One of JAFRA’s strongest advantagesover the competition is personal advicethrough classes,” says Mari Loli Sanchez,

Senior Vice President and PresidentJAFRA Mexico. JAFRA consultants consi-stently broaden their knowledge by atten-ding training courses and learning fromexperienced consultants, who pass ontheir know-how at the many seminarsJAFRA holds. Karla Plaza Arriola alsospent several years traveling all overMexico as a member of JAFRA’s regionaltrainers’ team, sharing her expertise andknowledge with her JAFRA peers.

In business since 1956, JAFRA became a member of the Vorwerk group in 2004Division headquarters: USACountries: JAFRA has its own direct sales companies in Mexico, the USA, Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Austria, the Netherlands, the Dominican Republicand Russia and sells via distributors in 9 other countriesCEO: Frank MineoPeople working with JAFRA Cosmetics:around 516,700, of whom more than515,000 are consultantsWebsite: www.jafra.com

Frank MineoCEO JAFRA Cosmetics

32

Personal advice, solid know-how

JAFRA has become one of the world’smajor cosmetics companies thanks to its innovative beauty and skin care products that combine new technologieswith natural active ingredients.

33

“The JAFRA success formula that creates“The Power to Transform Lives” is itsdirect sales party plan. JAFRA believes itssignificant sales increase in 2007 is just afirst blush of what to expect in the futureand reinforces its global expansion strat -egy for 2008 and beyond,” says Frank Mineo.

“Since the company began, JAFRA hasleveraged its cutting-edge beauty and skincare products, unique innovations blen-ding new technologies and natural ingre-dients, and its direct sales party plan tobecome one of the world’s largest cos-metics companies.”

New technologies and natural ingre-dients are also responsible for the successof the revolutionary skin care programJAFRA DYNAMICS, which was launchedlast year. “DYNAMICS is a major mile-

stone for JAFRA,” says Pragna Chakra-varti, JAFRA Vice President Research &Development and Chief ScientificOfficer.

The JAFRA DYNAMICS range of skincare products combines exclusive bota-nical complexes and the ancient wisdomof Ayurvedia herbal blends with the inno-vative INTELLISHIELD® technology.One of its active ingredients is the mem-brane that protects red marine algaefrom the extremely harsh conditions oftheir deep-ocean habitat. The secondingredient, a biotechnologically pro-duced polysaccharide, acts like a second

skin, providing protection from harmfulenvironmental influences and changingclimatic conditions. The products slowdown the skin’s aging process and alsorepair damage caused by the environ-ment. Individually formulated to suit themoisture and oil content of different skintypes, there are four JAFRA DYNAMICSskin care lines: Calming, Hydration, Control and Balance.

The new JAFRA DYNAMICS programalso has Karla Plaza convinced. “Our newimage and skin care put us far above ourcompetitors and give us exciting reasonsto contact everyone we know right now,”she says, pleased that thanks to the inno-vative new products, she can furtherexpand her clientele and win over evenmore women to both JAFRA productsand JAFRA career openings.

The products of the latest skin care program JAFRA DYNAMICS: Calming, Hydration, Control, Balance.

New skin care program creates a competitive edge

34

DIVISIONS

Everyday meals or elaborate menus, European or Asian specialties – with the Thermomix, they all turnout beautifully. Family managers all over the world love the highly innovative kitchen helper that saves them lots of time in the household. Find out for yourself just what this highly innovative all-rounder can do – give it a try with some international recipe favorites.

Healthy, Delicious Meals with the Thermomix

Perfect Partnerfor Good Food

Three generations of kitchen technology:below a VKM5, a Vorwerk mixer from the

1960s; above, the original Thermomix VM 2000. The current Thermomix TM 31 (left,

with the new Varoma attachment) truly is a technical masterpiece.

35

H ow much more does a modernkitchen need? The ThermomixTM 31 chops, minces, blends,

weighs, stirs, grates, grinds, mixes andcooks, and so replaces at least twelve house hold appliances as well as virtuallycleaning itself after cooking. So it not onlysaves lots of space, but lots of time, too.And with the Varoma steamer unit, it canproduce a full meal for four in just halfan hour. What’s more, this is such a gentleway to cook that no fat is needed and notonly the full flavor of the ingredients butalso the valuable vitamins and mineralsstay locked in.

“The Thermomix is one of the mostimportant kitchen aids since the inven-tion of fire,” says German 3-star chef Dieter Müller – praise indeed! Sophisti-cated menus or good home cooking,baby food or light, airy mousses – evencomplicated meals are simple to prepareand always turn out successfully with theall-rounder from Vorwerk. No wonderthe Thermomix is also at home in the kit-chens of such international top chefs asAlain Ducasse in France and Ferran

Adrià, the Spanish inventor of experi-mental molecular cuisine, who actuallyuses 15 Thermomix appliances in his kitchen.

The success story of the unique kit-chen helper began in France back in1970. Because thick soups are a favoritethere, the then Director Sales of VorwerkFrance, Hans-Jörg Gerber, hit on the ideaof designing a device that would be ableto mix and cook all at once. Vorwerkenthusiastically took his lead, and only ashort while later, in 1971, the originalThermomix VM 2000 came onto the mar-ket – originally in France, then later inSpain and Italy, where people traditio-nally appreciate good food and freshingredients. Naturally, the multi-talentwas soon selling like hot cakes.

More and more representatives in moreand more countries began to delighthosts of customers by demonstrating theadvantages of this clever form of cooking.Over time, Vorwerk gradually developednew models with improved performanceand new functions. The latest of these isthe current TM 31, for which a total of 23 patents have been filed.

The all-rounder is chock-full with inno-vations, such as a reverse function for particularly gentle stirring, blade wingsfor finest mincing, built-in scales thatweigh ingredients in 5-gram steps andalso a detailed temperature indicator.

Every 100 seconds, a Thermomix issold somewhere in the world today. Andthe kitchen star’s interna tional conquestscontinue – in eastern Europe, forinstance, in Mexico and in Asia. That’sbecause the popular allrounder giveswomen and men all over the planet whatthey want: the means to cook tasty, heal-thy meals in a jiffy.

Technical innovation in a minimum of space: 23 patents

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Sold since: 1971Division headquarters: SwitzerlandCountries: The division has its own sales companies in Spain, Italy, Germany,France, Portugal, Poland, Taiwan and Mexico and sells via distributors in 30 other countriesCEO: Jörg KörferPeople working with Thermomix:17,300, of whom more than 16,300 arerepresentativesWebsite: www.vorwerk-thermomix.com

Walter Muyres, Co-CEO ThermomixJörg Körfer, CEO Thermomix (right)

Learning from good examples

How do I go about building up a successful Thermomix sales operation?Which rules do I need to follow? Whatare the pros and cons of the differenttools available for motivating represen-tatives? Why are regular Monday teammeetings so important? The answers tothese and other questions can be foundin the so-called Best Practice Guidepublished by Division Thermomix.

“We got together for the first time afew years ago with people from oursuccessful sales companies to developthis guide,” says Andreas Zeidler, busi-ness development manager at DivisionThermomix. A new edition is due outthis year.

Exchange between sales companies isfostered by regular meetings and twointernational conferences a year, wherebest-practice lectures are frequently onthe agenda. For younger sales opera-tions, in particular, this is a tremendousadvantage - and for Division Thermo-mix, it’s an important basis for enteringnew markets.

Eight countries – one cooking pot. The Thermomix is ideal for preparing specialties from every corner of the planet. Try some spicy Polish pasta, for example, pasta with swordfish from Italy, an exotic rice dish from Taiwan or a genuine French quiche. And round off your meal with a light, fluffy Spanish “flan” washed down with a mouth-watering cocktail from Mexico.

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The Jubilee Menu

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DIVISIONS

Spicy Pasta Parcels from Poland

Pierogi RuskieRussian Pasta Parcels

IngredientsPasta: 480 g wheat flour, type 550, 1 tsp. butter, 1/4 tsp. salt, 300 g hot waterFilling: 150 g onions (halved), 40 g butter, 320 g boiled potatoes(without skins, from previous day) 2 tbsp. semolina, 3/4 tsp. salt,1/2 tbsp. black pepper (ground), 480 g cottage cheese

Preparation

Pasta:

1. Place all pasta ingredients in mixing bowl and knead 1 min/ / .

2. Remove pasta, set aside and knead briefly by hand. If the pasta is still sticky, add a little flour. Cover and leave to cool.

Filling:

3. Place onions in mixing bowl, chop 6 sec/speed 5. Heat butter in a frying pan and sear the onions until light brown.

4. Place potatoes and semolina in mixing bowl, chop 4 sec/speed 4.

5. Add salt, pepper, cottage cheese and half of the brownedonions, mix 10 sec/ /speed 3 with aid of spatula and continue mixing for another 20 sec/speed 4 with aid ofspatula.

Pierogi:

6. Roll out the pasta dough 2 mm thick on a floured surface and cut out circles with a glass (Ø approx. 6 cm).

7. Place some filling (1 tsp.) on the pasta circles and thenfold the circles into half-moons and press the edges together.

8. Immerse the pierogi in boiling salt water and simmer foranother 3 minutes once they have floated to the surface.

9. Serve pierogi with the remaining browned onions.

Tasty Bread from Germany

Apfel-Nuss-BrotApple and nut bread

Ingredients750 g apples (quartered), 100 g sugar, 150 g sultanas, 500 g flour, 11/2 packets baking powder, 1 tbsp. cocoa, 1 tsp. cinnamon, 200 g whole nuts (mixed)

Preparation

1. Place apples in mixing bowl, chop 5 sec/speed 5with aid of spatula and transfer into a bowl.

2. Place sugar, sultanas, flour, baking powder, cocoa and cinnamon in mixing bowl and blend 10 sec/speed 3.

3. Add the nuts and chopped apples, knead approx. 3 min/ / with aid of spatula.

4. Place the dough in a greased loaf pan (30 cm) and bake in a pre-heated oven for 60 minutes at 180°C.

Hearty Soup from PortugalSopa de grao com espinafresChickpea soup with spinach

Ingredients (to serve 8)300 g fresh leaf spinach, 120 g dried chickpeas, 1000 g water, 1 tbsp. salt, 200 g onions (quartered), 50 g olive oil, 200 g carrots (cut into pieces), 3 cloves of garlic, 150 g turnips (cut into pieces), salt, pepper to taste

Preparation

1. Place spinach in Varoma receptacle and set aside.

2. Place chickpeas in mixing bowl, pulverize 30 sec/speed 9, transfer into a bowl and set aside.

3. Add water, salt, onions, olive oil, carrots, garlic, turnips and pulverized chickpeas (on top!) to mixing bowl. Place Varoma in position and steam 25 min/Varoma/speed 1.

4. Set Varoma aside, insert measuring cup and blend 1 min 30 sec/speed 8-9.

5. Place spinach in a bowl, pour soup over it, seasoning with salt and pepper to taste. Mix soup with spinach and serve hot.

Delicious Pasta from Italy

Pennette allo spada con melanzane al rosmarinoMini-penne with swordfish and rosemary aubergines (eggplant)

Ingredients (to serve 4)1 aubergines (250 g), 250 g swordfish, 1 bunch parsley (10 g), 2 garlic cloves, 1 shallot, 40 g olive oil, 1 sprig rosemary, salt, 1 small dried chili, 100 g dry white wine, 150 g diced tomatoes,1200 g water, 320 g mini-penne

Preparation

1. Wash aubergine and cut into 2 cm cubes, salt and leave to drain in a sieve for 30 minutes.

2. Clean swordfish, remove skin and dice. Set aside.

3. Place parsley and one garlic clove in mixing bowl, chop 5 sec/speed 7. Set aside.

4. Place shallot and second garlic clove in mixing bowl,chop 3 sec/speed 7.

5. Add 30 g olive oil and sprig of rosemary, sauté 5 min/100°C/ /speed 2.

6. Add washed and well-drained aubergine cubes and cook 10 min/Varoma/ /speed .

7. Add diced swordfish, salt and chili, cook 5 min/Varoma/ /speed .

8. Add wine and cook 10 min/Varoma/speed .

9. Add tomatoes and half of chopped parsley, cook 10 min/Varoma/ /speed .

10. Pour sauce into a bowl and set aside.

11. Pour water into mixing bowl and bring to a boil 7 min/100°C/speed 1.

12. Add mini-penne and cook for time indicated on pasta packaging/100°C/ /speed 1 and arrange on a serving dish with the aubergine-fish sauce, sprinkle over the remaining parsley and drizzle remaining olive oil over the top.

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A Classic from France

Quiche Lorraine

Ingredients (to serve 4)100 g Gruyère cheesePastry: 150 g flour, 75 g butter (in pieces), 1/2 tsp. salt, 50 g waterTopping: 250 g water, 200 g diced bacon or ham, 30 g flour, 30 g butter, 250 g milk, 1 pinch nutmeg, 1/2 tsp. salt, pepper, 3 eggs, 2 tbsp. crème fraîche

Dried peas for blind baking

Preparation

1. Place Gruyère cheese in mixing bowl, grate 20 sec/speed 7. Transfer to a bowl and set aside.

2. Place all ingredients for the pastry in mixing bowl and knead 1 min/ / .

3. Mix pastry 10 sec/ /speed 2 and then remove frommixing bowl.

4. Roll out pastry 2 mm thick and place in a buttered and floured quiche dish.

5. Preheat the oven to 180°C.

6. Pour 250 g water into mixing bowl and heat 4 min/100°C/speed 1.

7. As soon as the water is hot, add diced bacon or ham and heat 1 min/100°C/speed 1, then place in a bowl and set aside.

8. Prick pastry in the quiche dish, cover with aluminum foil, scatter over dried peas and bake in the oven for 15 minutes at 180°C.

9. Place flour, butter, milk, nutmeg, salt and pepper inmixing bowl, mix 4 min/90°C/speed 3.

10. Set Thermomix at speed 3, then add the eggs, crème fraîche and grated Gruyère. Stop the Thermomix.

11. Sprinkle the diced bacon or ham over the pre-baked pastry,cover with the milk-mixture from the mixing bowl andspread evenly. Bake in the oven for 45 minutes at 180°C.

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The Jubilee Menu

38

DIVISIONS

Healthy Treat from Taiwan

Rice porridge with goji berries and Asian sweet potatoes

Ingredients: 1200 g water, 150 g rice, 200 g Asian sweet potatoes (alternatively yam roots or potatoes), 30 g fresh shiitake mushrooms(cut into cubes), 100 g diced chicken breast marinated in wine andsalt, salt, 5 g dried goji berries (alternatively cranberries)

Preparation

1. Place water in mixing bowl and bring to a boil 10 min/100°C/speed 1.

2. Add rice and cook 10 min/100°C/speed 1.

3. Add Asian sweet potatoes, mushrooms, diced chicken breast and salt to taste, cook 4 min/100°C/speed 1.

4. Add dried goji berries, cook 1 min/100°C/speed 1and serve hot.

Typical Dessert from Spain

FlanCaramel pudding

Ingredients (to serve 8) 500 g milk, 4 eggs, 130 g sugar, caramel sauce, 700 g water

Preparation

1. Place milk, eggs and sugar into mixing bowl, mix 10 sec/speed 4.

2. Pour some caramel sauce into 8 soufflé dishes (approx. 4 cm high) and fill them with the mixture. Wrap soufflé dishes in aluminum foil and place them into Varoma receptacle and Varoma tray.

3. Pour water into mixing bowl, place Varoma in positionand steam 30 min/Varoma/speed 1. Carefully remove aluminium foil and insert a toothpick to check if it comesout clean. If some mixture sticks to the toothpick prolongtime by a few minutes more.

4. Allow to cool 1 hour before placing in fridge for at least 1 hour.

5. Turn soufflé dishes upside down onto plates and removesoufflé dishes.

Tip:

• How to make your own caramel sauce:Place 200 g of sugar in a saucepan (Ø 16 cm) and cookover medium heat, stirring constantly, until the sugarmelts, becoming a light brown.Remove the saucepan from the heat and carefully add 100 g of hot water, stirring constantly. Cook the sugar andwater again over medium heat, stirring constantly until itreaches the consistency of syrup. Pour into a containerand let cool. The caramel will then have the consistency of liquid honey.

• It’s a good idea to make the dessert the evening before you plan to serve it so that it can cool properly.

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Refreshing Drink from Mexico

Strawberry Margarita

Ingredients300 g strawberries, 500 g ice cubes, 50 g sugar, 1 peeled and pitted lemon, 60 g Cointreau, 150 g Tequila

Preparation

1. Place strawberries in mixing bowl and puree 10 sec/speed 7.

2. Add remaining ingredients and blend the Margarita 1 min, gradually increasing speed from 5 to 10 with aid of spatula.

Tip:

• Moisten the rims of the Margarita glasses (Martini glasses)and dip in a mixture of sugar and salt. Then pour in yourStrawberry Margaritas.

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The international Thermomix Recipe Team works together on all aspects of Thermomix recipes, including quality standards. The countries’ recipe developers put together and test recipesfor the Thermomix to keep advisors and customers constantly suppliedwith new ideas for conjuring up delicious treats with the Thermomix.

From left to right: Alexandra Mas, Miriam Aguirre (TM Spain), Irmgard Buth (TM Germany), Alex Guignet (TM Export), Valentina Acquilino (TM Italy), Anne-Laure Allien (TM France), Corinna Haase, Kai Schäffner (TM Vorwerk International), Cristina Vela (TM Spain), Maja Ortner (TM Vorwerk International), Maria Acquaviva (TM Italy), Maria José de Resende (TM Portugal).Not in the picture: Renza Pivetti (TM Italy)

39

DIVISIONS

40

“Our sales advisers are expertswhere cleanliness and freshnessin the home and water qualityare concerned.”

Brigitte Leiner CEO Lux Asia Pacific

41

Well-being and purity: This is the promise Lux Asia Pacific products hold for customers and their families. That’s because both the Alva water purifier and the Vorwerk vacuum cleaners sold under the Lux brand name make for gleaming cleanliness and a fresh, healthy environment in customers’ homes.

Lux Asia Pacific

Cleanliness and Freshness

L ux Asia Pacific has been part ofthe Vorwerk group since 2001.With the acquisition, Vorwerk

secured itself a broad base in what wasthen the world’s most vigorous growthregion. “The number of householdsthere is high and disposable incomerising all the time,” says Brigitte Leiner,CEO of Division Lux Asia Pacific, describ -ing the situation in Asia. Already some 20percent of households in the emergingmarkets there have an income that allowsthe purchase of high-quality articles. Thesituation in markets such as Japan andTaiwan, on the other hand, has alreadybeen comparable to that in Europe forquite some time.

Lux Asia Pacific concentrates on the saleof two product groups: home care appli-ances and water purifiers. The Lux brandis already well established in Asia and theproducts all come from Vorwerk’s ownproduction facilities. Just as in other divi-sions, these appliances are sold direct.“Our goal in the countries of Asia is toestablish a large number of satisfied customers who will remain loyal to ourproducts for a long time to come,” saysMs. Leiner. Special emphasis is thereforeplaced on the training of managementstaff and coaching of sales advisers. Theslogan “Lux for Life” is set to gain evengreater significance in the future, bothfor customers and sales advisers.

The thorough demonstration includes a detailed water test.

The water purifier Alva delivers drinking-water quality. �

DIVISIONS

42

“Our sales advisers are experts where cleanliness and freshness in the homeand water quality are concerned,” sheadds.

The water purifier, especially, is a prod -uct customers need to have explainedthoroughly before deciding to buy. “As acore product, the water purifier is of

particular significance. Water quality isinadequate in many regions, whichmeans there is a genuine need for whichwe can provide a complete solution,” Ms.Leiner stresses. Contact with the custom -er continues after the sale because theLux purifier package includes a servicecontract and regular filter replacement.Before Alva is launched in a particularregion, the company always ascertains thegeneral water quality there. In the cus -tom er’s home, the sales adviser will then,where necessary, use the so-called “waterevaluation panel,” a mini-test lab, todetect impurities in the drinking water.

The following test really demon stratesthe purifier’s efficiency and is far moreimpressive because the customer canimmediately see the difference. The testinvolves a red liquid dye being added tothe tap water, which is then pumpedthrough the water purifier and in the end flows clean and clear into the glass.If the customer decides to buy, the appli-ance is usually delivered and connectedto the main water supply the same day.

Depending on the situation in the variouscountries, the sales teams work either ona door-to-door basis or use an addressrecommendation system to arrangeappointments for demonstrations. “Cul-tural differences and the market situationare very important here,“ says Brigitte Leiner. As a general rule, European products, and German ones especially,enjoy an excellent reputation in Asia.That’s an important talking point for thesales advisers, but also a decisive argu-ment for each individual customer.

Founded: 1926, Lux Axia Pacific has been a member of the Vorwerk group since 2001 Division headquarters: Singapore Countries: Lux Asia Pacific has its owncompanies in Indonesia, Japan, Thailand, Taiwan, Vietnam and the Philippines andsells via distributors in 7 other countriesCEO: Brigitte LeinerPeople working with Lux Asia Pacific:4.900, of whom some 2,900 are sales advisersWebsite: www.luxasiapacific.com

Brigitte LeinerCEO Lux Asia Pacific

Demonstrating a vacuum cleaner in Indonesia. Water purifier demonstration in Thailand.

1.2 billion people in the world do nothave access to clean drinking water

Facts & Figures

Cultural differences considered

43

T edious sorting, ironing on thewrong side, fiddly pleats, shinypatches, seam marks – these all

belong to the past thanks to the FeelinaIroning System. “A family manager irons520 kilos of laundry a year. That’s a moun-tain that would take a month to iron if

you did it all in one go,” says Ralf Brock-haus, CEO, Division Feelina. “With theFeelina, it can be done in half the time,so our customers have more time forthemselves and their family.”

The Feelina Ironing System was launched onto the German market in2002. That same year, it won the inter-nationally coveted red dot award: productdesign 2002. But it’s not just the designthat has made it a favorite with customersand the 280 Feelina advisers who presentthe prod uct. Technically speaking, the Feelina System leaves nothing to be de sir ed thanks to its suction and “airbag”function, special base and oodles of steampower, all of which make ironing a breeze.

“With the iron’s special base, the tem-perature is always just right. Even delicatefabrics, such as silk or appliqués, can allbe pressed at the same, constant temper-ature. Even T-shirts with transfer printscan be ironed on the right side. It’s reallytrue, nothing sticks to the special base,”Feelina branch manager Monika Steinenthuses.

The airbag also simplifies the job. The airbag function inflates clothes makingthem literally float above the board. A quick swipe of the iron and you’re fin-ished – without pressing in any seammarks. The suction function, on the otherhand, prevents fabrics from slipping asyou iron. And thanks to the enormoussteam power and the patented descalingsystem, every piece of clothing turns outbeautifully smooth and lime-scale marksdon’t spoil your laundry. With the Feelina, ironing truly is fun!

Ironing is one of the most time-consuming household chores. A family manager in a four-person household spends around 150 hours ayear doing the ironing. That doesn’t have to be because, with the Feelina Ironing System, the job can be done in half the time!

Feelina Ironing System

Saves Half the Time

Ralf BrockhausCEO Feelina

Founded: 2002Division headquarters: SwitzerlandCountries: The division has its own sales company in Germany and sells via distributors in seven other countries CEO: Ralf BrockhausPeople working with Division Feelina:more than 300, of whom 280 are sales advisersWebsite: www.feelina.com

Ironing with an “airbag”

DIVISIONS

44

U nique, durable and robust,that’s what the Kobolds, Thermomixes and Feelinas

have to be, and they should make anequally positive impression on sales teamsand end customers alike. “We want ourproduct to surpass the customers’ expec-tations,” says Dr. Günter Poppen, the man in charge of quality management atVorwerk Engineering. He is the pointwhere all lines concerning the quality ofVorwerk household appliances converge.“We integrate our processes from the verystart, when a product goes into develop-ment,” Dr. Poppen stresses. His depart-

ment is an integral part of research anddevelopment. One thing holds true forthe entire Vorwerk world: quality is nevercomplete! “Our work is an endless pro-cess of continuous improvement. Auditsare still performed after a product hasgone into serial production.” If errorscrop up, they are analyzed and corrected.

The general rule is that before a Vorwerk appliance leaves the factory, it is thoroughly tested. “Each of our em ploy -ees knows how important quality is to us.

This is as true at the facility in Shanghaias it is in Italy, France and here in Wuppertal,” as Heinrich Peterwerth,CEO of Vorwerk Engineering, is keen topoint out. A network of quality controlofficers in all locations ensures that quality is always high on the priority listeverywhere.

Today, Günter Poppen can claim withconfidence that “we currently have thebest quality we have ever had. Compro-mise is something we cannot accept!”That’s an assertion Pragna Chakravarti,Chief Scientific Officer and Vice Presi-dent Research & Development at JAFRA

However much Vorwerk products may differ, there is one thing they all have in common: top quality. Whether cosmetics fromJAFRA, carpets or household appliances, all of the products Vorwerk turns out are associated with modern technology and high standards. This image is the result of the traditionally stringent quality management at Vorwerk, which will continue to be of prime importance in the future, too – because only satisfied customers remain loyal to a brand, and only satisfied customers recommend a brand to others.

Uncompromising Quality

Extensive testing

“Each of our employees knows howimportant quality is to us. This is as true at the facility in Shanghai as it is in Italy, France and here in Wuppertal.“

Heinrich PeterwerthCEO Vorwerk Engineering

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Cosmetics in Westlake, USA, would cer-tainly subscribe to. “Our customers knowthat our consultants have been givingthem good advice for more than 50 yearsand that they can use our products with -out any risk.”

Before a new product is ready for themarket, it undergoes a series of micro-biological and clinical tests. “We want torule out skin irritations and allergies asmuch as possible. That’s why we takearound one year to test every aspect of anew formula. We test whether the pro -d uct remains consistent over a longerperiod, whether it tends to become con-taminated or whether a chemical reac-tion is possible between the contents andthe packaging.”

Clinical tests are run to ensure qualityand, depending on the product, the cosmetics company works closely withdermatologists, pediatricians and oph-thalmologists. Completing the process,further tests are then run to ascertainboth how well different skin types tole-r ate a product and also its end user accep-tance. Only then is the product releasedfor sale. “Our customers are discerningand willing to pay a little more for goodquality,” Pragna Chakravarti explains. She knows that all the effort pays off inthe end. Factors such as quality, design,health and ecological production arerelevant to carpets, too – today customers

expect more and the premium market isgrowing. “When we deliver our high-qua -l ity products, we deliver quality of life,”Johannes Schulte, CEO of Vorwerk Car-pets explains – adding to the purely tech-nical concept of quality such elements asstructure, color and design.

All of these factors must combine per-fectly and many other factors contributetoward the development of a new design.

The aim during production is to ensurea high-quality result. The weaving and tuft ing machines may operate automati-cally, but every error, no matter howsmall, is identified by a camera system fitted to the machine and correctedimmediately by hand. An expensive andtime-consuming business with just onegoal in mind: giving the customer the bestpossible quality – Vorwerk quality.

Volker Solbach at the Thermomix test bench performing quality checks on new appliances.

QualityThe quality of a product or a service depends entirely on all product require-ments being met – both the objectivelymeasurable features and specificationsof the producer and the subjective expectations of the customer. The basicprinciple of quality planning is prevention– the “zero-error principle“ is adopted as standard in all areas of the company.These principles apply in this or similarform to all Vorwerk group production facilities.

Division Engineering is responsible forthe manufacture of Vorwerk householdappliances and has plants in Germany,Italy, France and China. The products ofLux Asia Pacific are also made in China.JAFRA Cosmetics has a production facility of its own in Mexico. DivisionCarpets has its production site in Germany. Heinrich Peterwerth

CEO Vorwerk Engineering

DIVISIONS

46

It’s lying in a Tokyo theater, in a 5-star hotel in Barcelona, a London stadium and in the International Business Center in Abu Dhabi. It rides in high-speed trains through Germany and France and lies at the feet of Hollywood stars during award ceremonies. It is already 125 years old, yet at the same time younger and more modern than ever before: Vorwerk carpet.

Division Carpets

“New | Room | Feeling”

C arpet is a product closely inter-woven with the Vorwerk companyand its history. A part of that

history from the very first moment, car-pet has an eventful 125 years behind it,during which time its quality and versa -til ity have always been its great strengths.Vorwerk Carpets is now taking anotherstep into the future with a program of equally high-quality and creative prod ucts.

Vorwerk today presents its line of car-pets under a new aspect: “New | Room |Feeling”. The word “feeling” plays a cen-tral role here. After all, carpet is an almostunique furnishing element in that itdetermines through its material, its colorand its structure the emotional dimen-sion and “perceived warmth” of a room.That is why Vorwerk has expanded its program in this explicit direction. The

division was also fortunate enough to gainfor the project the creative services of theinternationally acclaimed designer UlfMoritz, who has won several awards forhis avant-garde textile and wallpaperdesigns.

His new collection, Ulf Moritz by Vorwerk, offers everything the premiumcarpet segment could wish for: excitingcolor worlds, exquisite materials, extra-vagant design, discreet luxury. A “prêt-à-porter collection with a touch of couture”is how the designer himself describes thecollection, with which the Hamelin-basedVorwerk Division Carpets is positioningitself as an exclusive brand for the mostdiscerning tastes.

Recommended by the German Asthma and AllergyFederation (DAAB): Vorwerk carpets reduce the finedust content in the room air of homes and offices.

Extravagant design

47

Aside from emotionalizing the product,the new direction principally aims toopen up new markets and market seg-ments. Internationally, Carpets wants tocontinuously expand its field of activities;in the commercial property market, theplan is to step up activities in the hoteland office segments. The aim: to contin -ue to set trends in a difficult competitiveenvironment and to unlock new poten-tial through growth and internatio-nalization.

In other words: Vorwerk will not beresting on its carpet laurels. That wouldrun counter to the corporate philosophy– after all, you only get to reach 125 yearsif you look ahead and focus on the futureand its needs. That is why Vorwerk itselfresearches and develops in many differ -ent directions: not only real-life futurescenarios – Vorwerk received an innova-tion prize, the “Zukunfts-Award,” for acarpet equipped with RFID sensors – butalso areas such as the environment andhealth.

Along with an international team ofscientists from 15 universities and insti-tutes, Vorwerk developed a householddust analysis, for instance, which for thefirst time ever made it possible to make aqualitative statement about the level ofallergens in the household. The GermanAsthma and Allergy Federation (DAAB)recommends Vorwerk carpets becausethey are particularly effective in reducingfine dust contamination in room air. Inaddition to the DAAB recommendationlabel, the carpets have also been awardedthe certificates of TÜV Nord “Für Allergiker geeignet” (Suitable for allergy sufferers) and the GUI seal “Reduziert effectiv Feinstaub in derRaumluft” (effectively reduces fine dustin room air).

Since August 2007, Division Carpets hasbeen working in compliance with the universally recognized environmentmanagement system DIN ISO 14001. Thisalso marks a success for the ExecutiveBoard, which has included environmen-tal concerns in its corporate principlesand expressly encourages the use of envi-ronmentally friendly materials and pro-duction techniques.

Carl Vorwerk probably never dreamedthat the company he founded wouldcome such a long way. But he would surelyhave been pleased to hear that Vorwerkcarpets are still making their mark in the international home and commercialsegment as they did throughout the company’s 125-year history.

Johannes SchulteCEO Division Carpets

“We want to lend someemotional touches to ourcarpets and turn interiordesign into a genuine experience. And that isprecisely what we havemanaged to do with thecollection Ulf Moritz byVorwerk.”

Johannes SchulteCEO Division Carpets

Founded: 1883Division headquarters: GermanyCountries: The division has its own companies in Germany, Austria, France and Switzerland, and exports to 47 countries CEO: Johannes SchultePeople employed by Division Carpets:over 350Website: www.vorwerk-teppich.com

Top environmental standards, recognized certification

DIVISIONS

48

H ECTAS sets a shining example with innovative facil ityservices of excellent quality in several European coun-tries. Its extensive portfolio encompasses the syste-

matic cleaning of buildings, facility and security services, as wellas all-round consulting and special offerings for greater satis-faction in the workplace. Thanks to its sound industry exper-tise, HECTAS guarantees to satisfy each customer’s specificrequirements, whatever the sector: administration, retail andlogistics, the food-processing industry or health care, to namebut a few.

In all sectors, HECTAS positions itself clearly as a providerof quality – and that in an industry where dumping prices arecommonplace. To deliver on its promise, the company opera-tes a sophisticated system of quality assurance, under which itsservices are regularly assessed by both project managers andcustomers. Process-optimization experts work tirelessly to

improve workflows. In addition to this, the different countryoperations regularly compare notes on best-practice solutions.“With 60 branches in Europe today, there are many experiencesother sites can learn from and good ideas to adopt,” Jens Koenen explains. He is the man responsible for marketingand business development at HECTAS. Such ideas can be suc-cessful sales concepts or an organizational tool, such as qualitycards for the monthly assessment of customer satisfaction. In1994, HECTAS became one of the first in the business ofcleaning buildings to receive DIN 9001 certification.

Today, quality management and environmental managementform an integrated management system that conforms to bothDIN 9001 and DIN 14001 standards – and applies Europe-wide

HECTAS counts among the most successful companies in the field of infrastructural facility services in Europe. In the future, the company plans to expand its position throughout Europe

Excellent performance makes all the difference

Nineteen HECTAS staff from Duiven in Holland cleaned 415 windows in 37 minutes. That’s a world best that earned the team an entry in the Guinness Book of Records.

Facts & FiguresFounded: 1974Division headquarters: GermanyCountries: The division has its own companies in Germany, the Netherlands, Austria, Poland, the Czech Republic, Belgium,Hungary and FranceCEO: Hans ter PellePeople employed by Division HECTAS: more than 11,500Website: www.hectas.com

HECTAS Facility Services

Spotless Career

INTERVIEW with Hans ter Pelle

HECTAS on Coursefor GrowthWhat opportunities for development doyou see in your industry at present?

The facility services market is already welldeveloped in Central Europe. The only wayto stand out from our competitors here isby offering new service types, or specialistor particularly high-quality services. In lesswell-developed markets, such as EasternEurope, for example, there is still great po-tential for growth in the facility servicessector.

Talking of growth, which targets haveyou set yourself?

By 2012, we would like to have achieved apresence in all of Central Europe by build -ing up operations in Spain, Italy, Portugal

and Switzerland. At the same time, wewant to consolidate our position in ourexisting markets by offering new services.We also plan to expand our activities inEastern Europe. No matter how much weexpand, however, we will never compro-mise on quality or on the way we treat ouremployees.

Which are your strategies for openingup new markets?If customers expand into new countriesand ask us to go along with them, we willdo so provided it is a lucrative propositionfor us. Or we might buy up an existingcompany and then expand it in line withour portfolio and quality standards. Wehave already been very successful withboth models in the past.

Hans ter PelleCEO HECTAS Facility Services

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and to all branches. This fits in perfectly with the companymotto: “HECTAS. All taken care of.”

As a true Vorwerk company, HECTAS attaches great impor-tance to quality and know-how as well as to setting itself highstandards as an employer. That’s why HECTAS has always,among other things, paid all of its employees a fair wage. Afterall, dedicated service staff are really the company’s capital. Theyare the people responsible for on-site results and customer satis-faction; without them, HECTAS would not have become theflourishing brand that it is.

This is the strategy with which HECTAS has gradually devel -oped into a European enterprise with industrial standards overthe years since its formation in 1974. A number of branches andnew services have been added to date – and more are continu-ally boosting the company’s portfolio.

That’s how HECTAS manages time and time again to set itselfapart from its competitors by introducing innovative develop-ments. The latest of these is a holistic hygiene system, of whichthe new surface disinfectant Oxidice® S-Des, which ensuresunsurpassed hygiene in food-processing plants and clinics, is akey element. HECTAS sees growing potential in the market forhealth and community facilities, where hygiene standards arenow playing an increasingly important role. This is a marketwhere the company can make its mark as a professional provid -er of quality services.

The HECTAS team is made up of people from 93 countries. Communication problems? Practically unheard of!

Facts & Figures

Innovation with a future

P ersonal contact to the customer isthe akf group’s great strength,”Eberhard Pothmann, member of

the Executive Board and Vorwerk CFO,emphasizes. “Our great field staff allowlots of time for personal consultation.What’s more, we are constantly expand -ing our branch network to be as close aspossible to our customers.”

The Vorwerk subsidiary akf was formed in 1968 to help customers financethe purchase of a vacuum cleaner – a major acquisition in those days. Today, the company has become a thriving specialist in the leasing andfinancing of mobile investment goods.These include cars, trucks, constructionand production machinery, and compu-ter and laboratory technology. Evenboats, helicopters and horses can be leased or financed through akf.

“Individual quotations, speedy processingand full personal service,” says MartinMudersbach, CEO of akf bank, whoknows very well what his customers want.“You have to keep their work input to aminimum.”

That’s why a 24-hour Internet service,a Saturday telephone service for auto-mobile dealers, fleet management soft-ware and an online costing tool that letsdealers calculate financing and leasingrates quickly and simply are naturally allpar for the course for the bank that part-ners small and medium-sized companies.Customer proximity and innovative offersclearly pay off. In 2007, the akf group’s

DIVISIONS

50

akf group

Partnering Mid-Scale BusinessesClose contact with customers is not only a typical feature of Vorwerk’s business in household appliances and cosmetics, butalso of the services provided by the akf group. That’s why the akf group has developed into a flourishing provider of financialand leasing services and is now expanding successfully in Europe.

Successful expansion to Poland and Spain

“You have to keep the customers’work input to a minimum.”

Martin MudersbachCEO akf group

business volume totaled 546.2 millioneuros; that’s year-on-year growth of someeight percent.

So what could be a more obvious nextmove than to export this successful busi-ness model? In the past two years, thegroup has set up its first internationalcompanies: the Madrid-based akf equip-rent españa and akf leasing polska in Warsaw. Both are coming along very well.

And the demand for leasing and financing services is growing becausemore and more German customers of akfare venturing into new markets abroad.As Martin Mudersbach puts it in a nut -shell: “The European Union has 27 mem-bers. There are some interesting marketsopening up for us here.”

Demand is growing

akf group

Established: 1968Division headquarters: GermanyCountries: own companies in Germany, Spain and PolandCEO: Martin Mudersbachakf group employees: over 300Website: www.akf.de

“We are expanding further”

INTERVIEW with Martin Mudersbach

Fleet leasing is one of the main areas ofthe akf group’s activities. How did thatcome about?Because Vorwerk is a direct seller and delivers its products direct to the customer,in Germany alone there are 8,000 sales advisers on the road – in a fleet consisting of 1,000 vehicles. The logical next step wasto add fleet management to our portfolio.And we soon noticed that we could offerother companies attractive deals in this segment, too.

What’s special about the services the akf group offers?As a family enterprise, we can empathizewith and respond flexibly to the needs ofthe small and medium-sized enterprises that are our customers. We offer them thatlittle extra in service they don’t get fromother leasing providers.

And what does the future hold?We want to be as close as possible to ourcustomers, so we are continuing to set upnew branches and are also pushing aheadwith our international expansion.

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Direct contact to the customer, and not only at trade fairs – that’s the key to the akf group’s success.

Personal service: An akf customer takes delivery of an entire fleet of vehicles.

Martin MudersbachCEO akf group

SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

52

T here are family managers all over the world, even if that’snot what they call it. That’s because women everywhere(and sometimes men, too) put all their energy into

making sure that their families have it good and life runssmoothly. The everyday lives of these all-rounders can be verydifferent. There are family managers who concentrate entirelyon their job at home while others additionally go out to work.There are mothers and fathers who raise their children aloneor with a partner, large families, small families and multigener -ational families. The family culture is basically just as colorfuland diverse as the job itself.

Whereas the most widespread type of family in northernEurope is the small family unit, in which men also increasinglycontribute actively to “family management”, in many Asiancountries, grandparents play an importantrole. In southern Europe and South America,it is perfectly natural for relatives to be con-sidered a part of the family network.

In big cities especially, there are more andmore families in which both partners go outto work, but only in very few countries is childcare provided by the state. In the end, there -fore, it is the mothers and family managersaround the world who are responsible forcoordinating child care, job, household, cooking and leisuretime themselves. That many women are more flexible todaythan they once were, despite their numerous duties, is due tothe technical household aids that lighten their load. Thingswere very different 125 years ago. In those days, household chores were hard physical labor and left a woman almost notime to devote to her children and family. Even less than 80 years

ago, the launch of the first Kobold vacuum cleaner caused asensation. Household “machines” had never been so handybefore, but then, suddenly, appliances became available thatmade household chores easier, simpler, faster to do – a devel -op ment that over the following decades would greatly alter thehousewife’s work and ultimately make the role of family man -ager possible.

Yet the purpose of helping family managers do their jobremains an important element of the Vorwerk corporate phi-losophy to this day. Itself a family enterprise with a long tradi-tion, Vorwerk is concerned with social issues, and each yearpublishes a family survey in Germany and awards a deservingnominee the title “Family Manager of the Year”. Aside from

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Family managers are assertive, strong communicators, competent, responsible, motivated, good at setting priorities and getting along with other people – just like managers in business. What’s more, they are also nannies, cooks, teachers, personnel officers, chauffeurs, event managers and spiritual advisers all rolled into one. What makes this job so unique?

“If I can spend some time cuddling with mykids in the evening, Iknow all the effort hasbeen worthwhile.“

�

Family Manager

The Most Important Job in the World

SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

54

Vorwerk's well-known time-saving and family-friendly cooking,vacuuming and ironing products, actually working as a salesadviser or consultant with Vorwerk is something that offersfamily managers a new perspective.

Women all over the world take advantage of the opportunitywhich a job in direct sales with Vorwerk offers them to balancefamily and work to suit their own needs. JAFRA classes and Thermomix and Feelina home demonstrations are particularlypopular with women as “part-time” jobs that also leave themtime for their family. In the end, it is up to every family man-

ager to determine how she runs her own “small family business”.In that sense, she is very like her manager colleagues in commerce and industry. For both, not only cultural and socialfactors but also the size of the business and their own personalstyle of management play a key role. And even if family man-agers don’t earn a manager’s salary and don’t have an office,cannot expand or hand in their notice, not one of them wouldlikely wish to trade with their business counterparts. The respon-sibility they carry is simply too great. After all, theirs is the mostimportant job in the world.

Even if family managersdon’t earn a manager’ssalary, not one wouldlikely change places.

Thanks to an array of modern appliances that make housework less of a chore, today’s family managers have more time for their loved ones.

T he Pahnke family is a true Vorwerk family with three gener -ations already having worked

with the company. Some 120 years is thetotal time Stefan Pahnke, head of main-tenance and repair, together with his father, his grandfather and his wife, Kerstin, have worked for Vorwerk.

When Stefan was a small boy, the Pahnkes lived right next door to the factory and he could often drop in on hisdad, Hans Joachim, during the lunchbreak. Stefan soon decided that he wanted to follow in his father’s and grand-father’s footsteps.

Lothar Hausmann, Stefan’s grandfa -ther and Hans Joachim Pahnke’s father-in-law, was a “Vorwerker” for an impres-sive 49 years, Hans Joachim Pahnke, for

a total of 36 years. His son Stefan is closeon his heels. He, too, has been with hisfirst and only employer for almost 25years. And if it’s left up to him, that’s notabout to change. “I can’t imagine wor-king for any other company,” he says. “I’ve never thought about switching, I’vefound my perfect employer.”

Vorwerk brought him luck outside thejob, too, because it was at work that hemet his wife, Kerstin. By Pahnke stan-dards, however, the human resourcesofficer is almost a greenhorn with hermere ten years at Vorwerk. Even thePahnke’s 11-year-old son, Christopher,already has plans to carve out a career forhimself with the family company – andso carry on the family tradition.

T hat cooking is supposedly afemale domain is an assertionStéphane Leroy disproves on a

daily basis. That’s because the 34-year-old is not just a passionate amateur chefbut also one of the most successful teamlead ers with the Thermomix direct salescompany in France. His enthusiasm forVorwerk and the Thermomix is some-thing he inherited from his mother, Françoise, who has already been workingwith the company these past 23 years. Asan area manager, she is responsible for350 representatives and several team leaders, one of whom is her son.

“It’s difficult to be your own son’smanager. We agreed from the get-go thatwe would never discuss Vorwerk in pri-vate. We both wanted to avoid any work

problems that could cast a shadow on ourrelationship.” Stéphane is happy he de -cid ed to choose the same career path ashis mother. “I cannot thank my motherenough for introducing me to Thermo-mix. It was anything but easy to begin with because I had absolutely no sales training.” These days he is just as success -ful as his mother and, although now inline for a post as area manager and there fore no longer giving many demon-strations himself, he still cooks with theThermomix every day – at home, for hisfamily.

So what is this Vorwerk family’s recipefor success? Here, too, mother and sonLeroy agree, “The most important ingre-dients are enthusiasm and sociability –the rest can all be learned.”

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For many people who work with Vorwerk, the family enterprise is almost family itself. We introduce two families, one from Germany and one from France, who have been working for Vorwerk for generations.

“Vorwerkers” over Generations

Part of the Family120 years of Vorwerk: the Pahnke family from Ennepetal

Together for the Thermomix: Françoise and Stéphane Leroy

PEOPLE

WORLDWIDE

A Career with Vorwerk

Commitment PaysExciting challenges within a highly diversified corporate group: Vorwerk attaches great importance to being an attractive employer.

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“Balancing family and jobis not a problem for me. As a freelance Kobold salesadviser, I initially workedpart-time and then movedon to full time. I decide myself when I work – andthat lets me choose the timeI spend with my family.”

Pepi MartinSales adviser

Vorwerk Kobold, Spain

“A talent for organization,conceptual intuition andmy strengths as a team leader help me in my workand ensure that we can all be successful together.”

Adriana GonzalezLady Grand Master

JAFRA Cosmetics, Mexico

“The USA, Australia, Germany and now Italy. Because I rise to the chal-

lenges every new day brings, I am internationally success-ful at Vorwerk. I am now in

charge of an entire sales areain Italy. Things couldn’t be

going any better for me.”Patrizia Castellano

Area manager Vorwerk Contempora, Italy

“My training at Vorwerk is great fun and I really

enjoy working in a harmo-nious work atmosphere.

The job also offers me excellent prospects.“

Dominik Begoll Apprentice tool mechanic

Vorwerk Elektrowerke, Germany

T op employer and family enterprise all rolled into one:Vorwerk prides itself on offering people not only inter-esting lines of work and good prospects but also a sense

of identification with their own corporate culture. Because thepeople who work for Vorwerk are also part of the “family.” Thismix of personal closeness and international breadth is proba-bly what makes Vorwerk such a special employer.

“We help to promote the Vorwerk growth strategy and contribute toward making the Vorwerk group a first-choiceemployer everywhere.” This statement from Wolfgang Bahlmann, Executive Vice President and Chief Human

Resources Officer, underscores Vorwerk’s aspiration to offerpeople interesting jobs and career opportunities – at all levels,in administration, production and in sales, too.

“Our success depends on people,” it says in one of the fiveVorwerk corporate principles. “For us, training and motivatingour employees and sales partners is of the essence. The qualityof our work together is based on trust, honesty, respect and fairness. We respect people as individuals,” quotes Mr. Bahlmann, adding, “Combined with high motivation and a willingness to embrace change and progress, that is the basisfor good cooperation with our staff.”

Vorwerk PrinciplesFive principles govern the quality of cooperation at Vorwerk. They connect and guide all member companies of the Vorwerk family andform the basis both for how our staff work together and also for how we are perceived in the marketplace and by the general public.

Clear Customer and Performance OrientationWe always strive to provide our customers with first-class productsand services. Within the company, too, we are dedicated to achievement, accepting only the highest standards. Vorwerk aims to secure long-term profits commensurate with our performance. This is only possible if our customers can put their faith in our performance.

Successful with PeopleOur success depends upon people. Extremely important to us, therefore, are the qualification and motivation of our staff and sales partners. The cooperation we value is founded on trust, sincerity, respect and fairness. We respect people as individuals.

Outstanding Thanks to Quality and InnovationVorwerk perceives itself as an innovative enterprise. As we have direct contact with our customers, we know their needs and wantsand accordingly provide them with top-quality products and services.At the same time, we are committed to using our natural resourcessparingly and attach great importance to the environmental friendliness of our products.

Thinking and Acting with a View to the FutureSince its formation in 1883, Vorwerk has been a family business. Thinking and acting with a view to the future is a matter of traditionwith us. This is how we make decisions and weigh up investments.Based on this long-term view, we also assume responsibility for ourstaff and sales partners. That responsibility includes involving ourselves in our social environment.

Prepared for Change and ProgressProgress is unthinkable without a readiness for change. We recognisethe need to introduce changes and are ready and willing to do so. Thisis a challenge we perceive as an opportunity for our dynamic company.

WORLDWIDE

Growth and a constant process of change – these also mean the need for the special training and development of staff. Since 1999, the Vorwerk Academy has existed to give aspiring managers an international perspective.

Vorwerk Academy

Create (y)our future

O ne goal that is firmly anchoredin Vorwerk’s corporate princi-ples is “global fitness.” The com-

pany’s desire and intention to impart itsown international perspective to itsemployees and to make them “fit” formanagement roles in an internationalenvironment are what global fitness is allabout.

“Learning from other countries andprofiting from other people’s experi-ences – that’s what has benefited memost.” Giovanni Gueli is Vice PresidentAdministration & HR at Vorwerk Contempora in Italy and he has alreadyparticipated in several Vorwerk Academyprograms. His words are typical of howmost participants rate their experience.In addition to further training led byinternal and external lecturers, theseinternational programs also placeemphasis on in-depth exchange betweenskilled and managerial staff from different countries. The Junior andSenior Management Programs targetmanagers and executives of all divisions

and aim to teach general managementskills. The altogether ten different“schools of business” convey specialistknow-how relevant to all divisions, suchas controlling, for example, interculturalmanagement, technology or direct sales.The target group comprises skilled and management staff. Attending theVorwerk Academy forms part of anemployee˚s career development and isagreed upon during the annual develop-ment consultation between an employeeand his or her superior.

However, there are a number of con-ditions an employee must satisfy in orderto be able to participate in a program.“The participants are our “high poten-tial,” who have been working for Vorwerkfor at least two years, have a good com-mand of English, wish to gain a bettergeneral idea of fundamental manage-ment processes, are interested in learningsome new skills and prepared to take onother duties within the group in the nearfuture,” says Wolfgang Bahlmann, Exec -utive Vice President and Chief HumanResources Officer. People like Paul Verkerk, in fact, who has already workedin several different international postingswith Vorwerk and is now Director Con-trolling in France. He has been on theJunior Management Program sinceFebruary 2006. “It’s an excellent oppor-tunity for many colleagues to get to knowdifferent people from different countriesand divisions and to introduce them-

selves and their work. Particularly if youhaven’t previously worked at one of theholding company’s affiliates, it can some-times otherwise be difficult to make andcultivate international contacts.” That’simportant for the participants, but alsocrucial to the future of the Vorwerkgroup. Its transformation into an inter-national player calls for its employees tothink in terms of international structures.“We already have more than 30 nation -alities represented in management posi-tions today,” says Barbara Lehr, SeniorVice President, Corporate ManagementDevelopment, who is responsible for theVorwerk Academy programs. One of themain jobs of corporate development willtherefore continue to be the systematicfostering of competent trainee managers.

In addition to the Vorwerk Academy,which is the chief corporate developmenttool the holding company has at its dis-posal, the individual divisions also runtheir own programs. These are speciallydesigned for sales and management train -ees. Elements of these programs have aninternational focus and so foster the deve-lopment of staff on the one hand, and ofthe entire Vorwerk group on the other.

Here a small selection of the entranceand trainee programs Vorwerk offers:

• House of Talents (DivisionKobold)

• Tutorship Program (Division Thermomix)

• Management Trainee Program(Division Lux Asia Pacific)

• Marketing Trainees and Branch Managers (Division HECTAS)

• Junior Sales Managers (Division akf group)

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SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

S ince last November, nothing hasbeen the same in Tabasco, whererain fell constantly for three weeks,

transforming the southeastern federalstate bordering the Gulf of Mexico intoa disaster area. Some 100,000 people atthe heart of the flooded state capital, Villahermosa, were completely cut off bythe water. One million people, almosthalf of the total population, lost theirhomes and all of their possessions in thefloods. Eight people died and many havebeen missing ever since. The harvest wasdevastated, food became scarce and bothmedical services and the telecommuni-cations system collapsed. Plunderingcompleted the chaos. Many employees ofthe direct sales company JAFRA Cosmet -ics were also affected by the flooding.

JAFRA has an office in the capital, Villahermosa, with 18 permanent em -ploy ees. The office supports seven LadyGrand Masters, 489 team leaders plus

almost 12,000 consultants. At least threeJAFRA people lost their home and manyconsultants could not be reached duringthe disaster. So it’s good thing that in disaster situations like this, where peoplereally are up to their neck in it, the Vorwerk group rolls up its sleeves anddoes everything it can to take care of itsemployees and to ease the effects of thedisaster. Back in 2002, when monumen-tal flooding hit East Germany, Vorwerkset up the Vorwerkers help Vorwerkerscampaign to raise funds to help the vic-tims of the disaster.

Two years later, in December 2004,when a tsunami caused widespread devas -tation in Southeast Asia, the Vorwerkgroup once again made a worldwideappeal for donations to provide on-the-spot help for the families of Lux Asia Pacific representatives who had died orbeen injured. Once again, the responsewas overwhelming: Vorwerk’s Executive

Board provided 200,000 euros in imme-diate aid. Further donations from em -ployees, sales advisers and represen-tatives from all international operationsbrought the total aid for those affectedup to over 450,000 euros. Lux Asia Paci-fic staff also distributed water purifiers tothe suffering population.

When the horrific pictures started tocome in from Tabasco, JAFRA launcheda large-scale appeal for donations. Everyeuro, dollar, peso, ruble or Swiss francJAFRA employees gave during the periodNovember 19 to December 19 was doubled by JAFRA and Vorwerk. Thedonations have meanwhile been passedon in the form of goods vouchers to theJAFRA consultants affected by the flood.

The Mexican consultants will likelynever fully recover from the anguish theyhave suffered, but at least a donation goesa little way toward softening the financialblow.

JAFRA staff, too, were among those who lost their home in the devastating floods that swept the Mexican state of Tabasco. The Vorwerk group was not slow to provide relief, however, and immediately launched an appeal for donations – as in the past,when the tsunami disaster hit Southeast Asia.

Fundraising Campaign Organized by and for “Vorwerkers”

The Vorwerk Group Sticks Together

Speedy aid after the 2004 tsunami: Lux Asia Pacific helped provide clean water in the flooded areas.

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WORLDWIDE

International Team Dynamics

When Different Cultures Work Together …

“To ensure that cooperation within international projectgroups works well, it is useful to be familiar with the differentcultures and their values.”

Ina BaumCoach, Intercultural Management

How do hierarchies look in other cultures? Who is the best person to approach? And where will a phone call, a short e-mail or a personal conversation be more likely to have the desired result? In order to be successful in an international arena, it is important to know the different cultures, how they differ and also what they have in common. To enable them to move with confidence on such terrain, the Vorwerk group prepares its employees for international challenges at training courses on intercultural management.

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F or Vorwerk, “going global” is notjust a slogan but a way of life. That’swhat makes Vorwerk so successful

and also adds to the company’s appeal asan employer. Within a context of inter-national cooperation, Kobold vacuumcleaners travel a long way from produc-tion to final delivery at the customer’shome. Along the way, there are numerousnegotiations to be held with internation -al partners and suppliers. This is a longprocess that starts with a screw and con-tinues through electronic components allthe way to final assembly of the appli-ances in one of the production facilitiesin Wuppertal (Germany), Arcore (Italy),Semco (France) or Shanghai (China).

That linguistic and cultural differencescan present a particular challenge issomething Germann Bumb knows allabout from daily experience. He man-ages the Vorwerk Engineering applianceproduction facility in Wuppertal. Even ifVorwerk staff receive language classes inthe group’s corporate language, English,to prepare them for work at internatio-nal level, that certainly doesn’t mean thatthe counterparts they have to communi-cate with are fluent in English. In orderto overcome language barriers, a con-

versation may occasionally be held in adifferent language. If necessary, drawingscan also prove a very useful aid for engi-neers when, for example, an external Chinese supplier without any English anda German want to “talk,” says Bumb, whohas already gained a great deal of expe-rience with intercultural teams in Italy,France, China, the United States andMexico.

Interpreters can help with small talk,but they are usually out of their depthwhen it comes to specialist discussions fullof technical terms. But even if every mem-ber of an international team does speakEnglish, communications can be im -paired by cultural differences. Accordingto a survey conducted by the business consultancy KPMG, some 54 percent ofinternational deals are not finalized. In65 percent of cases, cultural differencesare the main reason for this failure. That’spartly due to the fact that people oftensee other cultures only from their ownpoint of view and always compare themwith their own. It they are similar to theirown, they are perceived as normal and“good.” Anything different will often beconsidered “bad.”

“We don’t see things the way they are.We see things the way we are,” as Frenchauthor Anaïs Nin also discerned. Smallwonder, then, that Mexicans and Japa-nese, for instance, have quite differentdescriptions for the typical German.

The Mexicans see Germans as beingserious, reserved, cautious, inhibited, self-controlled and always in a hurry. By con-trast, the Japanese view of the Germansis of a relaxed, friendly, spontaneous,unin hibited, emotional and impulsivebunch of people who are prepared totake risks.

“To ensure that cooperation withininternational project groups works well,it is useful to be familiar with the dif -ferent cultures and their values,” says InaBaum, an intercultural management specialist who coaches Vorwerk groupemployees and at in-house seminars helpsthem understand the work practices ofother cultures.

When interacting with foreign cul -tures, it is important to be familiar withand to respect cultural differences. “Butit’s not a question of desperately trying tocopy the foreign culture, but of beingable to respond with humor should anunusual situation arise,” as GermannBumb advises. One thing’s certain, hewouldn’t trade his wide experience of dif-ferent cultures and already anticipateswith pleasure his continued cooperationwith colleagues from Europe, Asia andAmerica.

Other cultures, other points of view

English is the corporate language within the Vorwerk group.

“Consideration and humorare ideal door openers whendealing with people from different cultures.”

Germann BumbManager of the Vorwerk Engineering

appliance production facility

Respecting and creatively benefiting from differences

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P rize question: What can be broad and narrow, thick andthin, as well as hard and soft all at the same time? Nosuch thing? “Oh, yes there is,” says Michael Wissmann,

who is fond of citing the soft nozzle of the Kobold vacuumcleaner as an example of what appear at first glance to be the contradictory requirements of a new product. Michael Wissmann is in charge of research and development at VorwerkEngineering and describes his job as “living with contradic tions.”The soft nozzle, also often called “the housewife’s flower,” is ashining example of how a new and innovative product can bedeveloped in collaboration with the sales companies.

“Innovation is more than just an invention. An innovationcreates added value through new ideas and is ultimately also

successful in the marketplace,” says Mr. Wissmann. So the wayhe defines it, innovation is not an end in itself, as the exampleof the vacuum cleaner motor clearly confirms. “We have madesome huge improvements to the Kobold motor over the pastfew years. It is now 50 percent more powerful and three timesas fast, but weighs about five times less.” That’s a deciding factor because vacuums need to perform better and at the sametime become lighter all the time.

But how does an innovation come about at Vorwerk? As ageneral rule, our sales advisers and representatives find outwhere demand exists for product development through theirclose contact to the customers. “That’s one of our greatstrengths,” he believes, and adds: “Thanks to our direct salesteams, we are in very close contact with our customers, talk tothem about their needs and can then provide appropriate inputfor the product development process.” The Thermomix TM 31is a good example of this. A technically mature predecessormodel needed to be optimized, and Division Engineering andthe sales companies worked hand in hand on new concepts forthe blade, the heating system and on the overall structure ofthe appliance. That’s why the new model is such a success.Because it was a genuine step forward for the customer, for thesales people and also for the developers.

But how do such innovative leaps come about? Vorwerk usesa so-called “product calendar” that shows which products aredesignated for renewal or improvement in the coming years.“We can plan our development activities according to the calen-

INNOVATION

62

Product Development

Added ValueThrough New Ideas

“That is one of our greatstrengths. We find out whatour customers want and canthen provide the appropriateinput for the product development process.”

Michael Wissmannresponsible for Research & Development

Vorwerk Engineering

Basically, it all sounds very simple: The product division commissions a development, Engineering implements the requirements.Simple? Not quite – because there are so many little hitches that can arise once work begins on the details of a development. An innovative product has to go through several stages before reaching its market – and quite often, the initial idea comes straightfrom the customer.

Kobold motors are getting smaller and more powerful all the time. Innovative: the improved heating system of the Thermomix 31.

63

dar,” Mr. Wissmann says. So in the preliminary stage, the devel-opers can take specific suggestions into consideration, discussideas and try to bring new technical possibilities into line withupcoming requirements. “We can then hand the sales peoplea catalog of possibilities.” The new ideas must focus on someambitious targets. “If I ask for a 10 percent improvement I mightactually only get five percent,” he continues.

So the targets need to be differently formulated: in the caseof a new motor, for example, double the power plus a weightreduction. “Only then can we shake off old ways of thinking andsee a thing from a different angle. The result is often betterthen than the original target.” Employee know-how is a key factor in the business of innovations. Above all, young engineersneed to be brought in. “Fresh ideas are important for us,” Mr. Wissmann confirms. These young people get to work on

their products from start to finish and that’s a great incentivefor them to come to Vorwerk. Experienced staff members contribute their expertise in project groups and by exchangingideas and information, we manage to achieve, over and overagain, what at first seemed to be impossible: developing an innovative Vorwerk product from apparent contradictions.

Vorwerk provides jobs four some 1,200 people around the world in the production as well as research and development of all the Vorwerk products.

Facts & Figures

A prime example of cooperation between the sales companies: the soft nozzle for the Kobold, which is also known as the “housewife’s flower.”

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INNOVATION

Design encompasses form, function and color. But not only – it’s also about material and construction. “Design is vital if wewant to be distinguishable,” says Ina Struve, development manager at Vorwerk Carpets. Rolf Strohmeyer, chief designer at Vorwerk Engineering, puts it this way: “Industrial design is the overall concept of a product. It’s not just a question of goodlooks. Ergonomics, aesthetics, the unmistakable face of the brand and the typical brand impression are also key factors.”

Product Design

Design:A Deciding Factor

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H ow can we make products destined for direct saleinteresting and give them emotional appeal?” Rolf Strohmeyer, the man at Vorwerk Engineering

responsible for the design of the Kobold, Thermomix and Feelina products, asks himself this question long before product design gets under way. The design team is in on theprocess from the very first meetings between the sales compa-nies and the research and development experts. “At this stage,we develop some basic ideas and make a few sketches andmodels,” says Mr. Strohmeyer. Over time, the technical anddesign concepts are brought into line, always in close consul-tation with the sales companies.

The sensual component of design is important to Rolf Strohmeyer. “Our brand defines itself by the appearanceof the products, the impression they make is a deciding factor.”Yet design is not an end in itself. “The design must always makesense and clearly benefit the customer.” In order to keep theirfinger on the pulse of current trends, the Vorwerk designersregularly collaborate with such illustrious partners as the uni-versities of Essen and Budapest.

So it’s a holistic understanding on which the design and styling of Vorwerk products are founded. A look behind thescenes at Vorwerk Carpets reveals how true this is. Naturally,color still plays a dominant role in carpet design, and currenttastes go for warm, mellow, homey hues.“ Naturally, design ismuch more than just coloring to us. We are constantly strivingto surprise with innovation and emotion, to introduce high-lights and find special, unique structures. We like to inspire andset trends,” says Ina Struve, development manager at VorwerkCarpets and the person responsible for design. “What peoplewant today are carpets and carpeting that follow internationalstyle trends and have a distinctive character. Surfaces are domi-nated by clear, warm colors, and have lots of volume and a cer-tain graininess,” she adds. In terms of product design, this meanscarpeting with a much higher pile and surfaces that are moreintensively structured. What’s more, historical carpet designsare being newly interpreted. One example of this is a reincar-nation of the old flokati: the new “shaggy” style that’s currentlyall the rage.

To stay abreast of the latest trends and to strengthen theirmarket leadership, the people in Hamelin work closely withwell-known artists, who provide valuable input on patterns, shapes, colors and grades. “Bolder design elements are indemand today,” says Ina Struve. So the new slogan “New | Room| Feeling“ ideally expresses the latest trends: three dimensionsthat lend special emphasis to artistic statements.

“Design plays a key role at Vorwerk,“ say Ina Struve, development manager at Vorwerk Carpets (above), and Rolf Strohmeyer,

chief designer at Division Engineering (right).

“The design must always make sense and clearly benefit the customer.“

Rolf StrohmeyerChief designer, Vorwerk Engineeering

Vorwerk Kobold, Spain

SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

A secure home, a loving mother,carefree games with siblings,regular meals, schooling and

medical care: For many children, theseare not things to be taken for grant -ed.That is why, for more than 50 years now,SOS Children’s Villages has been provi-ding homes in which children in needcan receive the care, love and security

they need. There are over 480 SOS Chil-dren’s Villages in 132 countries today,chiefly financed by donations. Doingtheir utmost to support that work is some-thing close to the heart of Vorwerk’semployees, representatives, consultants,sales advisers and managers. As membersof an old-established family enterprise,they identify closely with the concept of“family.”

In 2002, Vorwerk set up the FamilyFund, which raises funds worldwide forSOS Children’s Villages. So far, the dona-tions have funded the building of threefamily houses in an SOS Children’s Vil-lage in Hyderabad, India, and two inMoín, Costa Rica. What’s more, until the

end of 2005, the fund provided for thecontinued care of the children living inthe Vorwerk houses in Hyderabad. Sincethe beginning of 2006, the village hasbeen able to support itself through localdonations and sponsors.

The Vorwerk Family Fund has set itselfa particularly ambitious goal to mark the company’s 125th anniversary: It is helping to build a complete new SOSChildren’s Village in Vietnam. The searchfor a suitable location is almost con cluded

Providing help for the children of this world – that’s what Vorwerk employees have been doing for years – by supporting SOS Children’s Villages with their generous donations and creative fund-raising activities. Thanks to their contributions, a new village is now being built in Central Vietnam.

Vorwerk Family Fund

Committed to HelpingChildren in Need

The anniversary year target:a new SOS Children’s Village

Over 480 SOS Children’s Villages in 132 countries around the world provide a new home for some 66,000 children.

Facts & Figures

Children also receive medical care at the SOS Children’s Villages.

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The Vorwerk Family Fund owes its existence to the exceptional initiative of the international Vorwerk staff andcompanies. The people of Vorwerk arehighly creative in finding ways to raisefunds. The Family Cent is another way of boosting funds in the donationsaccount: Every employee has the opportunity to donate the odd cents onhis or her pay check to the Family Fund.That donation is then doubled by the Executive Board.

Vorwerk Family Fund –SOS Children’s VillagesCommerzbank WuppertalAccount number: 4242533Sort code: 330 400 01IBAN: DE46 3304 0001 0424 2533 00BIC: COBADEFFXXX (= Swift Code)

and in a few months’ time, the founda-tion stone will be laid. The fund aims tomake its involvement in the village a longone by actively supporting it even after itscompletion.

Ute Kister, donor liaison officer withthe Hermann Gmeiner Fund, which supports SOS Kinderdorf worldwide, isdelighted about the help the VorwerkFamily Fund provides. “The tremendoussupport Vorwerk and its staff all over theworld have given us over many years reallyis something special. We are extremelygrateful and look forward to workingtogether on the new project in Vietnam.”

A new children’s village is urgently need ed here since Vietnam countsamong the world’s poorest countries. Tothis day, the country has not recoveredfrom the long and bloody war. There are twelve SOS Children’s Villages in Vietnam at present, but the need there isstill great. “We wish to help here and tocollect as many donations as possible,”says an emphatic Dr. Jörg MittelstenScheid, Chairman of the Vorwerk Advi-sory Board and founder of the VorwerkFamily Fund. “I am certain that Vorwerkpeople all over the world will once againcontribute enthusiastically.”

“The tremendous support Vorwerk and its staff all over the world have given us over many years really is something special.“

Ute KisterDonor liaison officer with the

Hermann Gmeiner Fund

Every cent is well usedFor SOS Children’s Villages it is self-evident that all money raised is properlyand transparently allocated. The annualfinancial statements satisfy the strictrequirements of the German CommercialCode and are audited by an independentfirm of accountants – the latter appliesboth to the German and the internationalSOS Children’s Villages organizations. The organization does entirely withoutprofessional fundraisers and pays no commissions. The cost of administeringSOS Kinderdorf worldwide totaled some4.5 percent of the total budget in 2006,and that is far below the average. That’swhy the German Central Institute forSocial Issues (DZI) regularly awards theorganization its donation seal of approval.

www.sos-childrensvillages.org

Playing and learning together at a Vietnamese SOS Children’s Village.

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A little piece of home. A garden oftheir own – that was what a groupof Bosnian refugees in Göttingen

wished for. Soon the women’s dreamcame true when they were presented with a plot of land. This became the first“international garden” that would bejointly tended by refugees and Germanfamilies.

That was in 1996. Since then, with alittle help from anstiftung, the idea hasborne lush fruit. In Göttingen alone, 300 people from 20 countries of originwork on the international garden project.Many similar initiatives ensued. The“international gardens” are a prime ex -am ple of initiatives the nonprofit orga -nizations anstiftung and ERTOMIS –since January 2007 merged to form “Stiftungsgemeinschaft anstiftung & ertomis” – have been sponsoring formany years.

Other examples of the foundation’s workare the Haus der Eigenarbeit in Munichand the Kempodium in Kempten, twocenters set up by anstiftung that have formany years provided opportunities forcraftsmanship and artistic activities,exchange and events. The foundationalso publishes research reports, organi-zes conferences and links and advisesseveral initiatives. That’s how an exten-sive network has grown up over the yearsthat enables people to turn their visionsinto reality.

And that’s not all. The MittelstenScheid foundation also backs diverseresearch and university education proj -ects, the arts, museums and exhibitionsas well as the restoration of historical buildings. That’s why, whenever it’s a question of works for the common good,the name of this great family of entre-preneurs comes up again and again.

Ertomis Stiftung GmbH was initiatedin1973 by Erich and Charlotte MittelstenScheid and Vorwerk & Co. KG. The re-search company anstiftung was foundedin1982 by Jens Mittelsten Scheid.

In January 2007, the two companies merged to become “Stiftungsgemein-schaft anstiftung & ertomis.“ The foun dation’s key focuses are historical awareness, self-determination and a sustainable understanding of social wealth. The foundation sponsors culture,science and research, and supports projects that foster sustainable lifestyles.

www.anstiftung-ertomis.de

SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

A garden tended by people from very different nations, a house for fostering craftsmanship and artistic activities – the foundation anstiftung & ertomis supports projects that foster individual initiative and thepeaceful co-existence of cultures. The Mittelsten Scheid foundation has made this work possible. It also sponsors other scientific, charitable and cultural projects.

Charitable Initiatives of the Mittelsten Scheid Owner Family

Ideas for a Humane Future

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“Every human being has far moretalents and abilities than he or sherealizes. We would like to create theconditions in which such potentialcan develop – for the benefit of theindividual and of society.”

Jens Mittelsten ScheidMember of the Vorwerk owning family

Najeha Abid with freshly picked vegetables from her “International garden.”69

IMPRINT

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125 Years of VorwerkThe International Vorwerk Group Jubilee Magazine

Version: April 2008

Vorwerk & Co. KGCorporate Internal CommunicationsMühlenweg 17-3742270 WuppertalGermany

Editorial TeamMichael Weber (editor-in-chief)Nina KannengießerAlexandra Stolpe

PhotosCora Fip, Frank Fischer, Kevin Liu, Frank Ossenbrink, Matthias Sandmann, Cornelia Suhan, Michael Weber, Henrik Wiemer, Getty Images, SOS Children’s Villages, Stiftung Interkultur, Vorwerk Company Archive

Text and Designrheinfaktor agency for communications gmbh, Cologne

TranslationLynda Matschke, Hamburg

PrinterDruckhaus Ley + Wiegandt GmbH + Co, Wuppertal-Barmen

At home around the world